Joint Venture for Affordable Housing

Nonprofit Moorestown Ecumenical Neigborhood Development, Inc., a New Jersey nonprofit organization, and Conifer Realty, a development company have teamed up to create an affordable-housing development with 104 units, wetlands, trees, and a lake.  MEND had the community experience and Conifer brought a strong financial background, access to outside capital, a large staff and a construction partner.  Together they created a $20 million development and will continue to work together on other projects.  The difficult credit market makes these joint ventures more common, but in the affordable-housing sector, the nonprofit/for-profit joint venture may prove to be a good way to go  even after the economy recovers.