SAN FRANCISCO, CA - The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program has driven the creation of thousands of affordable housing units each year for decades; throughout its history it has leveraged billions of dollars in funding. While the recession has made the search for financing a greater challenge, LIHTCs still offer the leverage needed to move projects forward successfully. Novogradac & Company LLP will explore the very successful LIHTC program at its spring conference as well as discuss emerging patterns and trends, best practices and strategies for advancing projects in the LIHTC industry. The conference, Affordable Housing: A Catalyst for Economic Growth, will be held in New Orleans at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel, May 19-20. It will feature rich discussions and networking, as well as bring together hundreds of LIHTC practitioners, from novice to expert.
"Today's affordable housing practitioners, developers, lenders and investors alike, have the unique opportunity to increase our nation's supply of safe, affordable, rental housing while infusing a mix of public and private capital into our economy, at time when doing so is more important than ever," says George F. Littlejohn, conference chairman and a partner in Novogradac & Company LLP's Austin, Texas office. "The LIHTC has always been a viable tool for bridging financial gaps; in today's economic environment, it is a powerful incentive and a potential stimulant of economic growth; however, to capitalize on the opportunity the credit offers, one must fully understand how it works."
The conference, with its emphasis on the new investor, financing strategies, and passed and pending legislation, can help participants understand how the program works as well as how to make it work for them. Sessions will offer industry practitioners the opportunity to exchange ideas, hear about innovative approaches and developments, and learn how to complete projects despite challenging conditions. Attendees can expect panelists, chosen for their experience and expertise in the field, to discuss methods for mitigating risks, review forecasts for short- and long-term rates, analyze the effects the 2011-2012 federal budget will have on the program, assess partnering with HUD and more.
After a full day examining the pieces of LIHTC development, attendees are invited to put the puzzle together. On Friday morning, tax credit veterans will walk conference participants through a few project examples of their own along the way relating how they've filled financing gaps and used market demographics to achieve success.
Conference participants are invited to attend a Mardi Gras-themed networking reception held Thursday, May 18 at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel. The 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. reception fosters and environment in which conference-goers can mix and mingle with colleagues and friends, discuss the details of the day's sessions and build new business partnerships.
For those attendees seeking CPE credit, the two-day event is worth 8.5 credits.
Additionally, two pre-conference workshops, LIHTC 101: The Basics and LIHTC 202: Asset Management, will be held Wednesday, May 18. Each course represents 6 CPE credits. Registration is separate and optional. Additional fees apply.
An LIHTC Property Compliance Workshop will be held concurrently with the conference. The May 19 and 20 workshop will inform and refresh those property managers who want to learn and understand low-income housing tax credit compliance issues and concerns.
The conference, Affordable Housing: A Catalyst for Economic Growth, is being co-hosted by PNC Real Estate and SNR Denton; sponsors include AEGON USA Realty Advisors, Boston Financial Investment Management, Enterprise Community Partners Inc., Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Prudential Mortgage Capital Company and The Richman Group.
Novogradac & Company LLP, a national certified public accounting and consulting firm headquartered in San Francisco, Calif., is consistently named by Accounting Today and Inside Public Accounting as one of the top 100 accounting firms in the country. Inside Public Accounting also named the firm as one of the 25 best managed accounting firms in 2010 and the San Francisco Business Times has recognized it as one of only five companies that for five consecutive years has made its list of the Fastest Growing Companies in the Bay Area.
Source: Novogradac & Company