With Higher Rate Environment Reducing Senior Loan Proceeds, Greystone’s Solution Will Help Complete the Capital Stack

Greystone, a leading national commercial real estate finance company, has launched a preferred equity and joint venture advisory and production group, to be led by Matthew Zisler, Senior Managing Director. The equity platform is intended to provide subordinate financing and help meet borrowers’ changing capital needs during today’s higher interest rate environment as financing transactions commonly yield lower senior loan proceeds.

Greystone Equity utilizes the firm’s balance sheet as well as existing market relationships to provide equity and preferred equity solutions to clients and is intended to be coupled with some of Greystone’s Agency or bridge financing solutions. Terms and requirements for preferred equity placed by Greystone varies depending on the senior loan product with which it is coupled.

“Our primary goal is to address and solve for borrowers’ pain points with their capital needs, and the growing amount of equity needed to close is a common concern in today’s market,” said Mr. Zisler. “With this complementary platform, we can provide our clients with the best in multifamily financing solutions while providing options to complete the capital stack.”

Mr. Zisler, who joined Greystone earlier in 2023, has over 20 years of experience in commercial real estate acquisitions, capital raising, equity investments, and structured financing. He was previously a co-founder, principal, and COO of Zisler Capital Associates leading its equity and preferred equity transactions business, and served as a managing director at AckmanZiff Real Estate Group. Mr. Zisler is a registered real estate broker in the state of Colorado and a registered securities representative, holding FINRA Series 7 and 63 licenses.

Greystone Housing Impact Investors LP (NYSE: GHI) announced it has provided construction and permanent financing for the new construction of a 40-unit mixed-income development located in La Mesa, California. The financing was originated by Frank Bravo, Managing Director at GHI, working in conjunction with Eliav Dan, Senior Managing Director, and Shana Daby, Managing Director, of Greystone on behalf of GWMP Investments, LLC.

The to-be-built property will be named 40rty on Colony and will include 20% of units designated for households earning up to 50% of the San Diego County Area Median Income (AMI). The property will include two (2) four-story buildings and one (1) three-story building consisting of 40 total multifamily units, as well as a community space, some enclosed garages, a carport and additional on-grade parking surface.

To finance the construction, GHI purchased tax-exempt recycled bonds and taxable bonds issued by the California Housing Finance Agency. GHI’s construction and permanent financing totals $11,900,000 ($5.95 million in tax-exempt bonds and $5.95 million in taxable bonds). At stabilization, and no later than 36 months from initial closing, the combined tax-exempt and taxable bonds, which are interest-only throughout the construction and permanent phases, will convert to a mini-permanent phase and will mature in June 2030.

“It was a pleasure working together to make this plan come to life and see the proliferation of much-needed affordable housing in San Diego County,” said Mr. Bravo.

“We are proud to have helped our client with a seamless execution of this construction financing and support the development of undersupplied affordable multifamily housing stock in San Diego County. We greatly appreciate our relationship with the sponsor, and our transaction correspondent, Max Benjamin Partners, serving as an instrumental part of the smooth closing process,” said Mr. Dan.

The property owner, GWMP Investments, LLC, retained Streamline Development Group to oversee construction and development.

“We feel we have assembled an excellent team to work together on executing our vision for this property, which will provide critical housing for the underserved workforce market in La Mesa,” said Mr. Greg Wayer, principal of the borrower.

Former Head of Freddie Mac Multifamily to Grow Mission-Driven Credit Platform at Greystone

Greystone, a leading national commercial real estate finance company, announced that Debby Jenkins has joined the firm as an Executive Managing Director. In this new role, she will focus on growing Greystone’s mission-driven strategies, including its Social Impact and Affordable Housing platforms. Ms. Jenkins will collaborate across teams to develop and execute strategies that promote the creation, financing, and preservation of safe and affordable housing that also makes a positive impact on local communities.

Prior to coming into this newly created role at Greystone, Ms. Jenkins spent nearly 15 years at Freddie Mac where she held a variety of leadership positions, most recently serving as Head of the GSE’s Multifamily platform. She has spent the greater part of her 30+ year career in the Multifamily sector, focusing on workforce and affordable housing.

“The prospect of having the tools and the team to build what is possible for Affordable and Social Impact Housing is what drew me to this opportunity at Greystone,” said Ms. Jenkins. “Greystone is renowned for its driving principle of impacting others’ lives, and the Social Impact concept is a natural extension of both Greystone’s cultural ethos and its expansive affordable housing business platform. I’m thrilled to take on a new challenge and contribute to the greater impact we, along with our clients, can make together for those who rely on critical affordable housing.”   

“Debby is a true visionary in our industry, and her diverse expertise in leading the nation’s largest mission-driven multifamily finance platform aligns with our goals in becoming a Social Impact Housing leader,” said Mr. Steve Rosenberg, CEO of Greystone, and to whom Ms. Jenkins reports. “I can’t wait to see what Debby accomplishes in her role here at Greystone and know that the sky’s the limit with her capabilities.”

Greystone, a leading national commercial real estate finance company, has provided a $16.8 million HUD LEAN 232/223(f) green loan to refinance a 102-unit Supportive Living Facility in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. The financing was originated by Adam Lipkin, Vice President and Michael Zukerman, Managing Director, of Greystone with Brent Connell of Geneva Capital acting as correspondent on the transaction.

Plum Creek at Rolling Meadows is a three-story facility on 1.46 acres, which was constructed in 1986 as a hotel property and converted to a Supportive Living Facility in 2006. The Supportive Living program in Illinois is an alternative to nursing home care for low-income older persons requiring mid-range care needs as opposed to skilled nursing.

With the 35-year self-amortizing refinancing, the owner committed to implementing “green” improvements that will result in an estimated 15% in energy savings and 10% in water savings annually, amounting to projected savings of over $20,000 per year.

Currently, the new HUD-insured green seniors housing program can cut closing costs by 75 bps and reduce the interest rate by almost half a percent (50 bps). This leads to a substantial decrease in annual financing costs and enables a significantly larger loan than HUD-insured financing without the green benefits.

“HUD’s new green financing program for senior housing is an excellent option to reduce debt service by making environmentally-friendly improvements, all the while benefiting from the long-standing advantages of a non-recourse FHA-insured loan – longer loan terms and amortizations, greater proceeds, and lower interest rates overall,” said Mr. Lipkin.

Greystone, a leading national commercial real estate finance company, has provided an $11,050,000 Fannie Mae Delegated Underwriting & Servicing (DUS®) loan for a 135-unit multifamily property in Meriden, Connecticut. The financing was originated by Dan Sacks, Senior Managing Director at Greystone, on behalf of Kennedy Holdings LLC, a long-time client.

Constructed in 1921, The Kennedy Building in New Haven County is a five-story midrise building offering studio apartments, as well as one- and two-bedroom units. The $11,050,000 non-recourse, fixed-rate financing carries a ten-year term and 30-year amortization, with seven years of interest-only payments. The loan proceeds will refinance an existing Greystone loan on the property and enable the borrower to monetize their equity in the property.

“Clients trust us because we carefully consider the complexities of their entire portfolio and circumstances when structuring products for their needs,” said Mr. Sacks. “We work through every phase of a property’s lifecycle and leverage our deep lending resources across the capital stack to secure long-term financing to help them achieve their vision.”

“Once again, Greystone was able to secure a financing solution that will help us reach our long-term goals for this property,” said Mr. Benjamin Weinstein, principal of the borrower. “Dan’s team are professionals who perform at the highest level – they are exceptional at what they do in every sense.”

Greystone, a leading national commercial real estate finance company, has provided a $20.9 million Fannie Mae Multifamily Affordable Housing (MAH) loan for the acquisition of Parkside Place, a 321-unit, income and rent-restricted garden apartment complex located in Pasadena, Texas. The financing was originated by Michael Zampetti, Senior Managing Director in Greystone’s New York office.

Parkside Place consists of 27 two-story apartment buildings situated on an 11.24-acre site. Constructed in 1969, the property was renovated in 2018 and includes amenities such as a leasing office, two pools, on-site management, a laundry facility, a business center, and private patios. There are 526 total parking spaces, including reserved handicap spaces and carports.

"Parkside Place plays a vital role in offering quality, affordable housing within the Houston metropolitan area," said Mr. Zampetti. "We at Greystone take immense pride in our track record of supporting affordable housing throughout the country and are happy to have facilitated our client's acquisition of this asset. It was a pleasure to work with the borrower. We are rooting for their continued success."