Green Affordable Housing Coalition Brownbag Workshop, December 9, 2008

Green Financing Options

The Value of Building Green

This brown bag meeting featured a lender forum with representatives from Wells Fargo and CITI to explore both the underwriting and appraisal processes for high performance, multifamily buildings. Presenters focused on the critical factors considered for underwriting and gave an insider view of the appraisal and valuation process of high performance elements.

The meeting also addressed the crucial role intermediaries play in leading the way in green underwriting, including local green loan funds from organizations like the Local Initiatives Support Coalition (LISC) and Enterprise.

Presenters:

James Finlay (Vice President , Commercial Appraisal Manager, Wells Fargo Bank, Real Estate Technical Services – RETECHS) has supported the Wells Fargo Environmental Initiative since January 2006 regarding valuation and appraisal issues and is the primary appraisal manager regarding ordering and reviewing appraisals on LEED/ high performance commercial buildings. This follows a lifelong interest in sustainable design and involvement with the Los Angeles Chapter of the USGBC since 2001. James is a reviewer for the Appraisal Institute Green Building Appraisal course, and is a frequent speaker on green/high performance valuation issues. He has been employed at Wells Fargo since 1999 within the RETECHS group as an appraisal manager/reviewer with a primary focus on mortgage technology applied to small commercial property valuations in addition to frequent larger complex commercial assignments. James has been professionally involved in commercial and investment real estate since 1988 first as a commercial real estate leasing/sales agent, becoming a Certified General appraiser in 1995. He is an independent fee appraiser, staff appraiser for several LA area appraisal firms and First Federal Bank of Santa Monica.

Merle Malakoff (Director, Citi Community Capital) has been involved in affordable housing development work for 20 years; 17 years as a development project manager with nonprofit housing corporations and, for the last 3 years as a banker with Citibank’s community development finance group in San Francisco. Merle has undergraduate degrees in Economics and Community Studies from UC Santa Cruz, a masters degree in Nonprofit Administration from University of San Francisco, and received a “Series 7” certification as a General Securities Registered Representative.

Peggy Jen (Senior Program Officer, Bay Area LISC) has been with LISC since the spring of 2000. She develops and implements LISC work in comprehensive revitalization plans with community developers and multiple community, public and private-sector representatives. Working with the Program Director, city officials and private sector representatives, Peggy assembles the financial resources necessary to implement comprehensive neighborhood development strategies. She underwrites and monitors loans and grants to produce or preserve affordable housing. As part of the technical assistance she provides to nonprofit housing developers, she oversees Bay Area LISC’s participation in the California-wide LISC Housing Development Training Institute a year-long comprehensive training for project managers. Prior to joining LISC, Peggy worked in the affordable housing field for over ten years. She received her Masters in Urban Planning from Rutgers University in New Jersey and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley.

Moderator:

Jennifer Somers (Program Officer, Green Connection, Bay Area LISC) joined Bay Area LISC in October, 2006 and spearheads LISC's Green Connection program, working to build the capacity of affordable housing developers in the areas of green building and energy efficiency. Jennifer is a LEED Accredited Professional and prior to joining LISC, she was an associate for an environmental consulting firm working with clients to bring them through the LEED process. She has also worked for non-profit community development corporations in San Diego and Houston, where she managed a variety of activities to develop both single family and multifamily affordable housing. Jennifer earned a Bachelor of Arts in both Economics and Spanish from Fairfield University and her Masters from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin where she focused her studies on environmental policy and sustainable development.

Presentations:

Green Financing Options for Affordable Housing - James Finlay

National Green Underwriting Standards - Jennifer Somers