Rethink Real Estate. For Good.

Community

Rent to buy.

How do we address the affordable housing crisis? There are lessons to be learned from all over the world. 

Kris Daff, in Melbourne, Australia, is developing an important solution. Australia’s housing market is very expensive and lack of tenure in the rental market results in significant levels of housing anxiety. At the same time, Kris, a real estate developer, was disenfranchised with the for-sale housing market in Australia. Usually there are display models and a sales suite, a real estate agent is appointed, and there’s a lot of expensive marketing deployed. The goal is to have investors or residents pay ten percent up front for the right to buy an apartment when a building is finished. Kris finds this to be an impersonal relationship between developer and homeowner, especially as more often than not investors are buying units with managing agents acting on their behalf. At the same time a superannuation investment industry which is the fourth largest pension fund in the world has emerged in Australia, and institutionally owned housing is likely to be on the rise threatening home ownership for those who really need it even further.

Kris wanted to find a way to get affordable homes into the hands of people who need them the most. To that end he embarked on his own international research project on how housing is delivered in other countries, large-scale housing owned by one entity and offered for long term secure rental for residents for whom ownership may be difficult. He took what he learned from US commercial housing models and Europe’s approach to the development of long-term rental housing and melded the two into a unique housing model. 

His company, Assemble Communities, builds uniquely affordable housing products that offer a stable, permanent housing solution for low to moderate income earners. They provide tenants with a five-year lease and an option to purchase their property at the end of that lease. They’re not obliged to buy but Assemble provides a program of financial coaching and cost-of-living savings initiatives to help them get there. To date, over 10,000 people have registered their interest with Assemble.

There are no pools or saunas here but Assemble has created an important solution to an enormous problem.

Listen to my interview with Kris Daff.

Image courtesy of Assemble Communities

Building a strong community.

A strong community is not built with one particular idea or project. There are many actors, ideas, visions and amenities that must come together to build a strong community.

The Mayor

A strong mayor can be instrumental to making change in a community. She must have a clear and strategic vision and she must have legislative power. Because she is responsible for hiring and firing staff and may also have veto power in implementing legislation, she inevitably will make a mark on how her city’s communities will grow.

The Chamber of Commerce

Chambers of commerce are generally made up of local businesspeople who promote and protect local business interests. They have existed in the United States since 1768. They choose their own leadership and debate which policies to promote and they can be effective in influencing regulators through lobbying. As a result they too can have an impact on the communities they serve.

Community Development Corporations (CDCs)

These non-profit, community organizations are an important piece of the puzzle. Their focus is on the revitalization of their communities, which are often low-income and underserved neighborhoods. Their initiatives are based around community health and can include the development of affordable housing, streetscaping projects and even social services and educational projects for residents. CDCs typically have local community residents on their board, and their work to enhance community conditions can also empower the residents. They play a critical role as well in building community wealth by keeping capital in the community.

Local assets

Maintaining local assets is another important step to building a strong community whether it’s a beautiful building that has fallen into disrepair, a local outdoor space which could be better utilized, sidewalks that are more attractive, bike lanes for commuters, better access to groceries or a local connection to transport. All of these things can improve life for residents and can give them pride in their neighbourhood and help make a community connected.

Private investment

All of these things drive private investment. Whether someone is looking for a new home to buy, or a potential real estate development site, they are more likely to invest in a community that is cared for.

One place where it’s all coming together is Erie, Pennsylvania. A typical rust-belt community, Erie lost jobs and people, and as a result saw many decades of decline in its infrastructure. Now the city has a mayor with a strong vision to make Erie a community of choice. And a private company, Erie Insurance, is playing an unusually large role in Erie’s comeback. Christina Marsh, chief community and economic development officer at Erie Insurance, has helped to create an equity fund that is now at 27 million dollars.  She has also been involved in the strategic planning of the redevelopment of four central blocks in Erie’s Downtown. The city, Erie Insurance, the Erie Community Development Corporation and the Chamber of Commerce are working together to reinvest in infrastructure while embracing the city’s diverse cultures. With many rich assets, they want to build upon a healthy and vibrant downtown and ensure that the city continues to grow. And they want to make sure they match the needs of employers with those of the community by creating a pipeline for jobs with access to education or hands-on training.

Listen to my interview with Christina to learn more.

Warner Theater Erie Marquee by Pnoble805 at en.wikipedia / CC BY SA 3.0

One year. 49 conversations.

49 amazing people. 49 inspiring conversations.

Josh McManus. Tom Murphy. Avra Jain. Liz Faletta. Eric Kronberg. Christine Mondor. Lorenzo Perez. John Perfitt. Jason Neville. Molly McCabe. Jonathan Tate. Scott Choppin. Matt Hoffman. Rebecca Foster. Brian Gaudio. Thibault Manekin. Jeremy McLeod. Kris Daff. Marc Koehler. Brian Murray. Josh Lavrinc. Emerick Paul Patterson. Brandon Dennison. John Folan. Majora Carter. Sadie McKeown. Justin Garrett Moore. Adam Sgrenci. Adrian Washington. Katie Swenson. Kimber Lanning. Brian Beckon. Jorge Newbery. Ommeed Sathe. Lance Chimka. Christina Marsh. Melissa Koide. Lyneir Richardson. Karina Ricks. Gabe Klein. Harriet Tregoning. Donald Shoup. Janine Firpo. Laura Callanan. Mark Roderick. Jennifer Castenson. Sandy Selman. Sandy Wiggins. Jim Kumon.

These are the rockstars of my show.

Next year? Bruce Katz. Michael Lee. Cynthia Muller. Patrice Frey and …

Read the podcast transcript here

Eve Picker: [00:00:12] Hi there. Thanks so much for joining me today for the latest episode of Impact Real Estate Investing.

Today marks the first anniversary of this podcast, something I am immensely proud of.  

[00:00:36] A year ago, I didn’t know that our audience would grow as it has. In fact, a year ago I wasn’t sure we would have an audience at all.  And I certainly never imagined that I would have the opportunity to talk with so many extraordinary individuals, leaders and movers in their respective fields, all doing remarkable things. 

When we started the podcast, I thought we would focus on real estate and the impact it makes.  But I’ve discovered that “real estate” is a very broad industry. I’ve found a horde of people working in fascinating niches around this one big central theme – the built environment we all occupy.

[00:01:26] These people work in city planning, on affordable housing, in impact investing, on mobility issues, in fintech, as architects, on sustainable development, on community capital, on equity in communities and in many other niches, pushing the boundaries of the built environment to be better for everyone. 

The range of work that is being accomplished, is quite frankly, astounding.

[00:01:59] I learned how big, visionary thinkers make cities better. Like Josh MacManus in How to leave places better than you find them. He’s spent quite a lot of time rebuilding downtown Detroit. 

Or Tom Murphy, past mayor of Pittsburgh, who showed incredible fortitude in shepherding Pittsburgh from abandoned to reinvented in How to transform a city.

And most recently, Avra Jain, who tells us all to look past the working girl on the corner in Beyond the Vagabond. When she looked she saw the future of Biscayne Boulevard.

[00:02:45] Other guests have reminded me of the power of zoning, architecture and design starting with Liz Faletta in By right, by design. Her in depth research on the impact of zoning on housing in Los Angeles provides unexpected insight.  

In Atlanta, Eric Kronberg convinced me yet again of the importance of salvaging architecture in The zoning whisperer.  

Christine Mondor reinforces the idea that architects can influence the future of cities in The power of design.  

And Lorenzo Perez’s creativity as a real estate developer in Phoenix caught me off guard in Real estate artist. His approach to transforming ugly desert architecture into beautiful community spaces is wildly creative.

[00:03:44] Let’s not forget the housing crisis. Lots of my guests are all in looking for big solutions. John Perfitt and Jason Neville are tackling homeless housing in Los Angeles by re-introducing iconic architecture, in Hungry for disruption;

Molly McCabe describes the unusual approach of the Lotus Campaign in Capital is just a tool.

Jonathan Tate takes an architect’s approach by focusing on the value of odd lots and the houses you can build on them in Lead by example.

Scott Choppin is tackling multi-generational workforce housing in The contrarian developer, an important niche that has gone unnoticed by other housing developers.

[00:04:31] Matt Hoffman is focusing instead on how technology might solve the crisis in 7.4 million short.

Rebecca Foster, in San Francisco, is busy saving existing affordable housing through financial tools on Accelerating affordable housing.

Brian Gaudio has a modular housing solutionin Scaling up.

And Thibault Manekin (T-bo) of Seawall Development is focusing on specific communities, affordability and astounding preservation efforts in Choose your own rent.

[00:05:22] Across the Pacific Ocean, Australian architect Jeremy McCleod has figured out how to deliver Sustainable, affordable and beautiful housing in a market that most people can’t afford.

Fellow Australian, Kris Daff, is tackling the same problem in a different way. He’s Assembling communities and offering them a path to home ownership.  

And across the Atlantic Ocean Marc Koehler is turning the architectural design process upside down by first curating communities and then designing a building around them in his Superlofts project.  It’s super fantastic! 

[00:06:08] Community development and social equity have moved into the foreground this year, and I expect will even more so next.  

Brian Murray is Embedded in community in Philadelphia, working on projects that provide equitable opportunity for everyone.

Josh Lavrinc has spent his career squarely focused on Advancing community development, through capital raising and real estate development

Emerick Paul Patterson is busy experimenting with inclusionary community tactics in New York. Listen to his love of diversity in Delicious Urban Soup.

[00:06:47] In West Virginia, Brandon Dennison is experimenting as only an entrepreneur can, on how to end generational poverty in A bold experiment in coal country.

John Folan, who heads a department of architecture, wants to make sure that the next generation of architects understand the meaning of equity. For John, Equity is the thread.

Majora Carter has gone from Revitalization strategist to barista in her efforts to bring equity to the South Bronx, one of the poorest zip codes in the country, and where she lives. “Nobody should have to move out of their neighborhood to live in a better one,” says Majora.

Sadie McKeown, in Political will and community, has seen firsthand the influence of good and steady political leadership in building better communities.

[00:07:43] Justin Garrett Moore has a day job ensuring the quality of public space in New York City.  But on the weekends, he’s knee-deep in redeveloping the community he grew up in. Hear what he’s up against as a black man in Black, white and red(lining).

Adam Sgrenci is showing communities how they can control their own destinies, andn educating developers on how to Co-create.

Adrian Washington has been developing in Opportunity Zones before they were a thing. He decided a long time ago that Greenfields are boring.

And Katie Swenson is the quintessential community architect. Home is the most important community development concept for her.

[00:08:43] For insights into economic development and financial inclusion hear Kimber Lanning who is Striving for justice in Arizona or Brian Beckon explain how to raise community capital in Share the wealth.

Jorge Newbery is using Fintech to keep people in their homes. He’s saved 10,000 and counting, while Ommeed Sathe sees Big Change in his role at Prudential, helping them to build a billion-dollar impact fund.

Lance Chimka who leads an Economic Development Department believes their role should always be First in. Towards growth.

Christina Marsh has given herself over to the remaking of Erie in Of service. In Erie.

Melissa Koide is researching and advancing ideas on financial inclusion. With Fintech.

And Lyneir Richardson, wants to help 1,000 urban entrepreneurs grow their business.

[00:09:55] I’ve learned about mobility in cities, and how it touches real estate and equity, from Karina Ricks, who heads a newly energized Department of Mobility, and from Gabe Klein, a mobility rock star, who convinced me that the future of mobility will be enhanced by data in Mobility is pretty pedestrian.

Harriet Tregoning is taking on a leadership role with NUMO, the New Urban Mobility Alliance, and explains why in The reluctant planner. And let’s not forget Donald Shoup, parking czar, who believes that parking is over-rated and under-compensated in Parking not required. 

[00:10:38] Others think about investment in ways I never imagined. Janine Firpo is on a personal journey to ensure that every dollar she invests does good. Listen to her explain why in She’s all in.

Laura Callanan is squarely focused on Connecting impact and creativity.

And Mark Roderick, a crowdfunding attorney, explains how the Securities and Exchange commissions are opening the doors for Democratizing investment. And why its a huge step forward;

[00:11:12] For innovation in the building industry listen to Jennifer Castenson, who surely has her finger on the pulse of new trends, in Living the Jetson life;  

Or maybe you want to learn about blockchain? Listen to Sandy Selman explain how it might be applied to real estate in Digital twins; and if you are ready to embrace sustainability and saving our planet in the most wholistic way, Sandy Wiggins may just be the one to listen to in Let’s change our mindset.

And if you think we need to get back to a former time, listen to Jim Kumon of the Incremental Development Alliance talk about The lost art of small-scale development.  He’s teaching small-scale developers how to get back there all over the country.

[00:12:01]Phew. That’s a lot of podcasts.  I’ve enjoyed every interview with every person.  I’m in awe of them all.   But it’s time to take some time off to rest, enjoy the weather and just step back from the extraordinary last few months that has rearranged all of our lives.

We’ll be back refreshed in September with many more amazing people for you to listen to and me to learn from.

Thank you so much for joining me.  Now go forth, invest a little in your community and make some change!

The role of architects in building communities.

America is such a diverse country. It encompasses geographic locations as diverse as the Mississippi delta, Bethel in Alaska, New York City, San Antonio in Texas, Hawaii and the Great Lakes. And it encompasses even more diversity in its community types — from rural to tribal to suburban and urban.

But despite this diversity there are many common themes that unite us. One of those themes is the current housing crisis and the question of how we will solve it.

It’s important to understand that diversity is a result of the people and an expression of their environment and community values. This is what creates something that is unique and individual to a place. In the same way, buildings and communities also have an opportunity to be designed in concert with the values, ambitions, aesthetics and goals of the people that occupy them, both those responsible for creating them and those who will live and grow in those communities.

So, what role should an architect play in building local communities? In recent years the architect’s role has grown and changed and it is still evolving. An architect’s role should not only be to build distinct projects and beautiful buildings, but it should also help knit together the blocks of housing, libraries and parks into a community where residents feel supported and are able to live well and grow their families. For community-based development groups, a dedicated architect can be an important resource to help with the ins and outs of affordable housing development, community engagement and regulatory processes.

Katie Swenson is such a community architect. Over the many years she has spent working on affordable housing, she has always been a powerful advocate for equitable cities and communities. Her work with the Enterprise Rose Fellowship Program taught her a lot about the role of architects in local communities — architects who approach their work with a desire to help communities achieve their goals and who bring the best resources from the architectural and design communities to bear in this local work.

In 2020 Katie became a senior principal at MASS Design, a design practice that embraces issues of economic and social equity. Katie believes that the importance of home, especially as revealed by the Covid19 Pandemic, has never been so important. “Buildings shape us, they shape our experience. They shape our health outcomes.” says Katie. “We need to ask more of our buildings and participate in a greater spatial awareness and spatial literacy to understand the profound effects that the built environment in general, and the buildings that we occupy in specific, have on our health outcomes and our quality of life and productivity outcomes and that we gain a sort of awareness and capabilities around our ambitions for the built environment.”

Listen to my interview with Katie Swenson.

Image by Jonathan Greene

Nurturing urban entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs will shape our future.

They have problem-solving coded into their DNA. They are innovative, embrace challenges and change, are critical thinkers, questioning and always forward-thinking. Entrepreneurs see the bigger picture, think outside the box, are creative risk-takers and have the tenacity to follow through on their ideas.

Entrepreneurs are enormously important. They have the potential to help address societal challenges not only by creating jobs that contribute to our economy but by re-shaping the way we work and live.

But just how do you become a successful entrepreneur? While an entrepreneur might be innovative, creative and a big thinker, she may not have a natural aptitude for business strategy or an ability to keep control of finances. Young companies require versatile skills to be successful and these skills need nurturing. Entrepreneurs need an environment that fosters innovation and inspires new ideas and universities are a great match for them. They encourage innovation and are not afraid to navigate the unknown.

One such university is Rutgers, in Newark, New Jersey, where Lyneir Richardson has been cultivating such a relationship with entrepreneurs in the Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development (CUEED). The CUEED’s nine-month program for urban entrepreneurs has so far seen 400 enrol. Executive director Lyneir, an entrepreneur himself, plans to make it a 1,000.

The CUEED program isn’t just for Rutgers students or alumni. Its focus is on racially diverse, distressed urban neighborhoods and businesses like the local coffee shop or professional service provider. They want to accelerate and grow each and every one of them into a sustainable company. This will not only bring economic development to distressed neighborhoods, but also better neighborhood amenities, better educational outcomes and just altogether a better quality of life. And the entrepreneurs, as they become more successful, will become community anchors who employ locally and are active in their own community expanding the outcomes even further.

Listen to my interview with the passionate and energetic Lyneir Richardson.

Image by Jonathan Greene