How We Can Help

Strategic Planning and Program Development

Our clients have included some of the leading nonprofit housing and community development organizations and foundations in the US, working at both the local and national level. Some selected engagements have included:

• Center for Community Investment, Accelerating Investments in Healthy Communities (AIHC), 2019-2021, working with major health care institutions to develop and execute comprehensive partnerships to support housing investments as part of commitments to social determinants of health; Connecting Community and Capital, 2022-present, working with six community-based partnerships to increase Black homeownership with the support of JPMorgan Chase.
• Community Development Trust (CDT), worked with board and senior staff to develop and adopt a new strategic plan, 2019-2021.
•  Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing worked with board and executive staff in 2016-2017 to develop a new strategic plan for 2017-2021.
•  Wells Fargo Housing Foundation in 2016, 2017 and 2018 to plan, facilitate and evaluate a series of convenings with its national grantees to identify opportunities for growth and collaboration.
• Annual national convenings by the Homeownership Preservation Foundation between 2014 and 2017 of its network of housing counseling and education intermediaries to identify and prioritize joint efforts to advance the field of housing counseling.
• National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders strategic plan, 2016, and refreshing the plan in 2022-2023
• The Melville Charitable Trust in its board planning through a structured survey and interviews with leading state coalitions on homelessness and housing.
• Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future to plan, organize, and facilitate a strategic planning effort in 2011 and in 2014.
• Cinnaire to identify emerging market issues and opportunities for expansion and growth and a new strategic plan, 2014-2018
• IFF in the creation of and execution process for a new strategic plan in 2013.  
• NCB Capital Impact on their Ford Foundation funded work to promote effective approaches to long term affordable homeownership, 2010
• Led a year-long strategic planning process for the Mercy Housing, Inc. board of directors, culminating in an October, 2009 board review and facilitated work session to adopt new strategic statements for the next 5 years.
• John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to develop the expansion of its multi-year, multi-million dollar Window of Opportunity initiative to preserve affordable rental housing.  We surveyed practitioners about opportunities for new grant making and investments, developed options for the Foundation's staff, assisted in the design of a solicitation and review of new funding proposals, conducted site visits wit h finalists and participated in the initiative's launch. 
• On behalf of the MacArthur Foundation's research program, canvassed the field and presented recommendations for priority future funding areas to support preservation of existing affordable rental housing at a day-long June, 2009 convening at the Foundation's headquarters.
• The National Housing Trust in 2007 to develop a new strategic plan including a two-day board retreat and subsequent board meeting at which the plan was first designed, then adopted.

Business development

• Working with Corporate Social Responsibility Associates to help the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) identify potential new markets and products to grow its business.
• Senior Advisor to UniDev LLC, in its unique mission-oriented practice of helping institutional partners create permanently affordable housing for their workforces.

Policy Development

• Sr. Fellow, Consumer Federation of America 2019-present
• Invited participant, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Roundtable on the Federal Home Loan Bank system at 100, November, 2022
• Member, Bipartisan Policy Center Housing Commission, 2011-14
• Reviewed the newly launched CDFI Bond Guarantee program for Kresge Foundation, 2014.
• Key note presenter at Housing Washington annual conference, October, 2012, 2013 and 2014.
• Keynote speaker, Governor's Housing Conference, Crystal City, VA, 2018
• Keynote presenter at the Vermont State Housing Conference, November, 2014
• Visiting Scholar, San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank, May, 2013
• Keynoted at the Florida State Housing Conference, 2013.
• Panel presenter on the future of housing finance reform at the BPC Housing Summit, September, 2014.
• Presenting a comprehensive overview of current housing policy issues
  and likely short-term changes in a keynote address to a June 21-22,
  2010 conference for state and local leaders in existing affordable
  housing preservation hosted by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
• Facilitating a day-long policy review for the National League of Cities to help them prepare policy and program recommendations for their membership
• Facilitating a day-long planning session in 2008 for the CDFI Fund's Subcommittee of its Community Development Advisory Board.  The meeting covered emerging issues in CDFI finance.
• Keynote speaker, Housing Arizona, Flagstaff, September, 2008
• Advising the Ford Foundation
  on policy and program responses to the mortgage and foreclosure crisis,
  working in partnership with the University of North Carolina's Center for Community Capital.