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In this series, we take a deep dive into some of the most fascinating people in commercial real estate: the deal makers, game changers, city shapers, and great people who keep CRE interesting.
Bianca Newman is no stranger to affordable housing.
As she says, she started affordable housing as an industry from a very personal place.
From growing up in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood to working in two of the most densely populated cities in the country, she has looked at housing policy and finance from many different angles throughout her career.
Newman saw SOMA changing during the dot-com crash in the early 2000s as neighbors were evacuated or acquired, but then all that change stopped when the money dried up.
She stayed in San Francisco after college and discovered a passion for housing policy through a fellowship, which translated into a role with the Mayor’s Housing Authority.
A few years later, she and her now-husband moved to New York City to work for the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development. There she worked in special underwriting and financing operations for projects.
Eventually, she moved back to San Francisco and began raising a family closer to home. She has spent the past six years working in business development for affordable housing groups. She previously worked at MidPen Housing Corp., where she then moved to her current role as Business Development Director at EAH Housing.
EAH Housing is a West Coast-based nonprofit housing developer with 230 properties in California and Hawaii.
She lives in Bernal Heights with her husband and two children.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Provided by Bianca Neumann
Bianca Neumann and her family
Bisnow: I wanted to start with the topic of how we finance affordable housing. How do you find investors and funding to put the project together and meet all the requirements needed to make your affordable housing project a reality?
Bianca Neumann: We have debt and equity in affordable housing. Because rents are restricted, debt is incredibly limited. Therefore, the income we generate to support our debt is usually quite small. Our capital comes in the form of low-income housing tax credits. That’s another very complicated conversation. However, there are two types of him: 4% and 9%. They are, [both] It has been oversubscribed and is now a competitive source of funding.
So, in a low interest rate environment, between debt and equity, you’ll probably fund 50-60% of your capital stack. We all know that interest rates have increased. There is also what we call the gap, which we need to fill, and there is currently a measure against local government bonds. Therefore, there may be local governments that provide funding to support the project. But many places need to get funding at the state level.And for the states we have this super [Notice of Funding Awards] This program aims to streamline and simplify things so that we don’t have to run all the different programs on different timelines and in different applications.
Bisnow: How is that program and other state programs working to close the gap?
Neumann: For 2024, they say there will be only one round. [of Super NOFA funding]Therefore, there is only one way to close these core gaps. There are other programs from the state, too, such as carbon credit-funded affordable housing and sustainable communities funding. This is a little more consistent since it’s not based on bond financing. However, it is still only an application once a year.
These other funding sources tend to have their own rules. If you are using multiple rules, all rules must be stacked on top of each other. You must modify your project to meet the requirements of these programs. Project decisions cannot be made strictly based on market needs in the field. I have to make decisions about the project being built in line with available funding sources and all policy initiatives supported through that funding.

Provided by Bianca Neumann
Bianca Neumann with her daughter, Golden Gate Bridge in the background.
Bisnow: Are there any federal actions that would help organizations like yours? Is it policy or something like telling local governments they have to spend federal money in a certain way?
Neumann: Now, the first thing that comes to mind is what everyone is worried about: the availability of vouchers. You know, what’s happening right now in the federal budget is there’s talk of drastically limiting the vouchers that are available. And they make a huge difference in the operational aspects of moving a project forward. So I think that’s definitely a big help. From then on it gets complicated. There are many reforms that could be made to the low-income housing tax credit program, but I don’t want to delve too deeply into them.
Bisnow: Are there any specific initiatives, whether programs or policies, that you would like to highlight as successful nationally, in California, or perhaps during your time in New York?
Neumann: One of the things that I thought New York did very well was actually encourage market rate development and more inclusive housing. And part of the way they did that was by offering tax incentives even to market-rate developers who included a sufficient amount of affordable housing within their developments. That’s difficult because right now we’re in a situation where we have so many budget constraints that the idea of giving up any kind of tax revenue is difficult. But it really fueled a lot of growth. I think this could have a big impact because I don’t think affordable housing is the only solution. I think we all need to build housing. We are not building enough housing, which further complicates the issue of the need for affordable housing. Therefore, anything we can do to support or promote further development around the world helps us all.
Bisnow: I have two specific questions. One is about Super NOFA. What does that process bring to your workflow? How many EAH housing projects were funded by Super NOFA last year and how much?
Neumann: You must receive state aid before you can receive the tax credit. That’s part of this whole timing issue. But the fact that it’s once a year means everyone is on the same timeline. So industry consultants, lawyers, everyone can have it all at the same time. If we can get funding, that would be great, because then we’re going to go to the tax credit round. And if all goes well, you get the money in the tax credit round, but if not, you’ll be waiting for the next round. The good thing is the tax credit round, he’s had three so far. It is said that by 2024 there will only be two doses, but at least the second dose will be available. …Then, the number of days from receiving the award to starting construction is exactly the same. So we’re all moving on the same timeline, and that same timeline is full of people. So you’re really expanding your resources of consultants, financial consultants, lawyers, and so on. It causes a lot of traffic jams.
There are no prizes for Super NOFA 2023 as they have not been announced yet [have been funded] at this point.
Mr. Bisnow: Several state laws in California went into effect in early 2024, specifically exempting some developments from parts of the California Environmental Quality Act. I’m curious if there are any changes you’re more excited about that could change California this year and for years to come?
Neumann: I want to be excited about the rights change. I also think there has been a lot of focus on improving the entitlement process and limiting CEQA from being used as a weapon. [Not-In-My-Backyard activists].
I’d like to be more excited about these things, but if you give the rights to a project but can’t fund it, it still doesn’t meet a need that’s out there. Going back to Super NOFA, it’s once a year and it’s bond-financed. This is the last year that we know of any funding. And over the past few years, for every dollar requested to fund a project, $10 was requested but not funded. In other words, you have a project ready to go, but you don’t have the money to build it.
Bisnow: Do you have any idea how many projects EAH has in the Bay Area and Northern California?
Neumann: We are currently seeking funding for eight projects.
Bisnow: How do local ordinances and laws impede affordable housing development in California? Are there specific examples you can give of either San Francisco or San Jose to illustrate that point? mosquito?
Neumann: San Francisco is a bit unique in that it is exempt from many laws simply because of the way its planning review process is conducted. Therefore, it does not follow typical title construction permit rules. Everything happens at the same time, getting planning permission and then amendments to permissions along the way. At the state level, there has been a movement to consider specifically how San Francisco could be exempted.
I think where we run into problems is when we fall into protectionism and when we work in communities that treat things as precious and are not open or welcoming to change. Now, it’s very important to design to build within a local context. Some may disagree with my opinion, but building his 20-story building in a 3-story neighborhood is a no-brainer, even though it would have a huge impact and give the area a ton of housing. may not be the right thing to do either. . But pushing it to the 5th or 6th floor and making that kind of gradual push can make a big difference. Local government ordinances are difficult because they stem from a genuine desire to respect and protect the community.

Provided by Bianca Neumann
Bianca Neumann and her family.
Bisnow: In many San Francisco neighborhoods, there’s a real tension between new development and local character, and you can hear it at public meetings about proposed projects.
Neumann: To be honest, that’s a big part of my working life and what I do. Because I’m running a new business, so I’m finding new projects and determining if I have a path to funding and rights and can do it for the rights period. I have a lot of positive interactions like that. You can’t do that without really understanding or respecting the other side of what is being said. Even if I disagree with something, I don’t think people say it out of malice in most cases. They care about their community.
Bisnow: What are your bold predictions for the rest of this year?
Neumann: Housing starts are expected to slow significantly this year.
Bisnow: Why?
Neumann: In terms of market interest rates, even though premiums have come down a little, I don’t think people are feeling safe yet. I think there is still a sense of tension. And in terms of affordability, I think there’s a lot of stuff that’s ready, but there’s just not enough funding. We’re looking at significant budget cuts at the state and federal level, so I think that will trickle down. We’re going to see a real slowdown. There will not be many housing starts this year.
Bisnow: What is your weekend routine or favorite weekend activity?
Neumann: I have two small children. I have two children who are 8 years old and almost 4 years old. And since her husband and I are very local, we love exploring the city and having adventures with our kids. We usually choose a neighborhood in San Francisco, go to a coffee shop, go to a new playground, go to the library. The great thing about San Francisco is that they have a passport at the library and you get a sticker when you go to every branch of the library. My daughter is hooked. I think she has been to 12 branches at this point. There are many restaurants within walking distance, so choose your restaurant accordingly. And for us, it just brings back memories and makes them do things that we did as children. They always look forward to riding the bus.
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