Century Emerging Developers Program Helps Minority-Owned Businesses

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Century closed its second loan utilizing the Century Emerging Developers Program with a local nonprofit active in the affordable development space. Through the program, Century provides financing to minority and women-owned developers who, because of organizational size, lack of capitalization, or limited track records, do not have access to financing on the same terms as more established developers. The program underscores Century’s ongoing commitment to racial and social equity.

With the help of a Century acquisition loan, developer Alliance Property Group has partnered with the nonprofit Community Bible Community Development Corporation to transform Valley Pride Village Apartments, an existing 88-unit complex in Sylmar (shown above), into affordable housing for seniors. The developer will convert 59 units to affordable homes for seniors earning 50-80% of the area median income (AMI); the rest will remain unrestricted and serve Housing Choice Voucher holders. The investment will also pave the way for solar and energy efficiency improvements and rehabilitation totaling $28,000 per unit.

This follows an earlier transaction with Venice Community Housing (VCH) to develop a 61-unit, 100% affordable new construction project just south of the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Mall and the upcoming Leimert Park Metro Rail station. Century’s acquisition and predevelopment financing leveraging the Century Emerging Developers Program will help VCH further its mission of building minority-owned business capacity and our common calling to serve low-income Los Angeles households, in this case those earning 30-60% of AMI.

The Century Emerging Developers Program is a Special Purpose Credit Program funded by a dedicated $15 million credit facility provided by JPMorgan Chase Bank.

CityView Apts.

Century Acquires CityView project, Preserves 296 Affordable Homes for Seniors

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CityView Apts.

Century is pleased to announce the $66.5 million acquisition of CityView apartments, a 296-unit multifamily senior housing community located on a 2.58-acre site in the Wrigley area of Long Beach, California. Homes at the community serve senior households earning at or below 60% of Area Median Income (AMI).

Renovated in 2015, City View includes upgrades such as a new cool roof, replacement of all existing residential and storefront-type aluminum frame single pane windows with nonmetallic frame double pane windows, installation of Energy Star refrigerators, HVAC improvements, and LED light installation. Project amenities include a community room, fitness center, library, tech center, laundry facilities with TVs, game tables, elevators, surveillance cameras, controlled-access entry, rooftop deck with a BBQ area, and 173 parking spaces.

The project is conveniently located directly adjacent to the Metro Blue Line Wardlow station, providing tenants ease of access to the greater Long Beach and Los Angeles area, Long Beach Medical Center, and other medical services relevant to the tenant population.

“Creating and preserving affordable housing for seniors close to transportation and medical facilities enhances the lives of senior residents so they can be independent and thrive,” said Ronald Griffith, President and CEO, Century Housing.

The CityView acquisition was made possible through a non-volume cap real estate secured tax-exempt bond offering in combination with an unsecured privately placed AA- rated tax exempt bond. This novel method of financing has not commonly been utilized and provides an innovative approach to capital raising in the challenging affordable housing environment. This capital markets-based strategy relied on the issuance of two separate but coordinated 501(c)3 bond sales: a $48 million public execution with Wells Fargo as the underwriter and a $21 million private placement to Barclays through U.S. Bank as underwriter and placement agent.

“Century Housing is thrilled with the results of this financing structure, which ultimately delivers value for the preservation of affordable rents for this senior population,” said Alan Hoffman, SVP & CFO, Century Housing. “Through transactions like this, Century is able to directly apply its financial strength toward its social and environmental mission of financing the development and preservation of affordable housing.”

Both the publicly offered and privately placed bonds carry an ESG opinion from Sustainalytics in connection with the environmental and social impacts of the project they finance. Embracing the vision that homes are the cornerstone of a thriving and just society, Century is deeply committed to addressing the economic and social inequities that are so pervasive throughout society. Through this acquisition, Century preserved rent affordability for close to 300 low-income seniors. The financing for this project serves as an innovative model for injecting new capital and resources into preserving and creating future affordable housing projects throughout the State of California and beyond.

“We are proud to serve as placement agent for a bond designed to support quality affordable housing in California,” said Marcus Martin, managing director and head of ESG, Fixed Income & Capital Markets (FICM) for U.S. Bank. “This unique bond – a result of collaboration between our FICM and U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation teams – is an example of how we can bring highly tailored, socially impactful financing solutions to CDFI partners and investors. We applaud our longtime client Century Housing for its efforts to bring this important project to life.”

With a growing housing portfolio, Century’s approach is to develop supportive, green housing at scale while achieving financial sustainability and delivering meaningful social impact.

“Barclays is constantly working to innovate in the affordable housing sector and this landmark tax-exempt transaction with Century Housing Corporation will help serve as a prototype to providers nationwide. We are proud to have provided Barclays’ balance sheet to facilitate this transaction and to continue our efforts to provide sustainable, affordable housing to those in need,” said Damian Busch, Director, Barclays.

“Wells Fargo is honored to partner with Century Housing- an organization that is critically important to the financing and development of affordable housing,” said Peter Cannava, Managing Director, Wells Fargo.

CADI President, Brian D’Andrea said, “Century is immensely grateful for the efforts of the entire deal team including our lead underwriters at Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank along with institutions like Barclays that invested in these social impact bonds. Especially at a time when inflation is disproportionately affecting those on fixed incomes, these investments will produce a meaningful difference in the lives of our low-income seniors for years to come.”

Looking Back on 2020

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As we reflect back on a challenging 2020, we’d like to recount a sampling of the Century team’s proudest achievements. These accomplishments reflect the best of Century’s values, advancing our mission of making homes the cornerstone of a thriving and just society.

  • Century celebrates 25 years of service with two $25,000 donations to charter schools that we established and helped operate. Both schools are located in Inglewood and serve low income, minority communities. Find out more at https://century.org/25th/
  • Century closed loans totaling approximately $209M, which will create and preserve 4,544 affordable homes for families, seniors, and veterans at a average affordability of 46.5% of AMI and will help create more than 4,400 construction jobs. We continue to be the highest volume CDFI lender to affordable and workforce housing in the State.
  • Our remarkable Century Villages at Cabrillo staff responded rapidly to the pandemic to provide supportive services, community engagement activities, and property management services, addressing the acute needs of their vulnerable population. This included the coordination and deployment of COVID resources for residents including masks, COVID testing, food vouchers, Internet access, and more, resulting in one of the lowest infection rates compared to similar shared living areas.
  • Century was assigned a ‘AA’ Rating with a stable outlook by Fitch Ratings, one of the major nationally recognized financial rating organization. This rating joins our current S&P Global’s AA- rating and makes Century the first CDFI to be rated by both Fitch and S&P.
  • Century issued $85 million in ESG municipal CUSIP bonds to advance our mission throughout the state of California, becoming the first CDFI to come to market with a municipal bond CUSIP. The third-party opinion by Sustainalytics attests to both the environmental and social benefits that will be created by the homes made possible by these bonds.
  • Our Long Beach development, The Beacon, received numerous prestigious awards, including SCANPH Development of the Year, AIA-LA Residential Architecture Award, PCBC Gold Nugget Grand Award, and Multi-Housing News Excellence Award.
  • In July, a required VA public hearing took place, which cleared the path for development activities at the West LA VA campus. Century and partners Thomas Safran & Associates (TSA) and U.S.VETS continued advocacy for the West LA Campus Improvements Act, which was introduced to Congress by Senator Feinstein in the fall. TSA broke ground on Building 207 and the Dry Utility Trunkline. Visit wlavc.org to learn more.
  • Century and partners, HACLA, Richman Group, and National CORE submitted the One San Pedro Transformation Plan to This plan was the result of extensive hands-on community outreach, planning and design work, and due diligence and assessment activities. It will pave the way for future development activities, including up to 1,400 homes, parks and open space, and commercial and supportive service space. Find out more at www.onesanpedro.org

 

The Beacon Wins at SCANPH

The Beacon Honored with SCANPH’s Award for Overall Excellence

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The Beacon Wins at SCANPH

 

We are proud to share that our Long Beach development, The Beacon, was awarded Multi-Family Development of the Year by SCANPH at the Annual Conference’s Homes Within Reach Awards Ceremony. The award recognizes excellence in affordable housing among projects completed in the last year. Selections are submitted by SCANPH members and chosen by an independent jury of professionals from throughout SCANPH’s regional footprint.

The Beacon, home to veterans, formerly homeless people, and very-low-income seniors, is centrally located directly across from a Metro Blue Line stop and two high-frequency bus lines and serves as a physical gateway to Downtown Long Beach. Opened in 2019, The Beacon features a new bus shelter and approach, community rooms, barbecue areas, and computer rooms, with wrap around social services provided through Mental Health America. Beacon is a mixed-use project with 6,200 square feet of retail along Long Beach Boulevard.

“Century is extremely proud of our Beacon Project providing 160 beautiful and much needed affordable homes to veterans and vulnerable seniors,” said Brian D’Andrea, Senior Vice President of Century. “Beyond homes, The Beacon will provide residents with supportive services and connectivity to job and service centers via the Metro light rail and local bus lines. We thank all our partners for making Beacon possible, especially Wells Fargo, KPRS and The Architects Collective. We are most thankful to the City of Long Beach for its financial and overall support through its amazing Development Services and Housing Authority teams.”

The Beacon wins PCBC Golden Nugget

The Beacon Shines With PCBC Gold Nugget Grand Award

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The Beacon wins PCBC Golden Nugget

Century’s commitment to exceptionally-designed affordable housing was recognized with a PCBC Gold Nugget Grand Award for Best Affordable Senior Housing Community presented to our Long Beach development, The Beacon. The seven-story, 121-unit building, centrally located near public transit and serving as a physical gateway to Downtown Long Beach, overcame a series of funding and approval obstacles before it opened in 2019. It is now home to very-low-income seniors making less than 50% of AMI. Community rooms, barbecue areas, and computer rooms add to the quality of life for residents, with social services provided through Mental Health America.

“The Beacon exemplifies Century’s effort to provide quality, sustainably-built affordable homes that are near transit and developed in collaboration with the surrounding community and the City of Long Beach, which played an integral role in making this happen. We are especially excited for the low-income seniors who will benefit from access to Downtown Long Beach and many other resources connected to the Metro Blue Line,” said Brian D’Andrea, Senior Vice President of Century.

PCBC’s 57th annual Gold Nugget Awards, held virtually this year, recognize excellence in architectural design and planning achievements. A panel of top industry experts reviewed nearly 600 entries from around the world spanning more than 50 categories.

Del Rey Square Opens to LA Seniors

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Los Angeles City Councilman Bill Rosendahl took the wraps off Del Rey Square, a 124 unit senior housing community in West Los Angeles, on April 12, 2013. Open to formerly homeless  and low-income seniors, the complex includes a computer room, fitness center, and private balconies and patios which complement the spectacular Spanish-style exterior.

Century helped finance the project with a $9,547,500 acquisition loan through the New Generation Fund to Thomas Safran & Associates, an award-winning developer responsible for more than 40 properties throughout Los Angeles.

ALA’s Janet L. Witkins Center Breaks Ground

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Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky joined a long roster of city officials to celebrate the ground breaking of The Janet L. Witkins Center in the heart of West Hollywood on March 15, 2013. Named after the founder of Affordable Living for the Aging (ALA), an organization dedicated to senior housing and also this project’s developer, the center will be the nation’s first sustainably and universally designed home for vulnerable seniors.

Century’s $850,000 acquisition and predevelopment loan helped finance the 17 unit project targeting seniors with incomes at or below 30% of the area median income.