Press Release

NEW YORK – The New York office of leading multifamily financial services provider Merchants Capital today announces it has provided more than $13 million in financing to a joint venture between Gorman & Company and the Gary Housing Authority (GHA) for the rehabilitation of the historic Carolyn Mosby Apartments in Gary, Indiana. The financing is integral to preserving the affordability of the project for its residents. Located at 650 Jackson St. just west of downtown Gary, Carolyn Mosby Apartments was built by the GHA in the late 1960s as a public housing development. The eight-story high-rise contains 142 units in a variety of one- and two-bedroom floor plans reserved for senior and/or disabled residents earning 30-60% of the area median income (AMI). The project received an allocation of $13 million of tax-exempt bonds from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, enabling GHA to partner with Gorman to convert it from public housing to a long-term Section 8 Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) Contract as a Section 18 public housing disposition and perform much-needed renovations while continuing to provide rental assistance to its residents. Merchants Capital New York facilitated the bond purchase in the form of a $13 million Merchants Bank of Indiana (MBI) construction loan. Following construction completion, the loan will convert to a $5.239 million permanent loan pursuant to a Freddie Mac Tax-Exempt Loan (TEL) Forward Commitment, to be serviced by Merchants Capital. The project also received equity investments totaling approximately $9.7 million in return for federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits and federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits. Additionally, the project benefits from a variety of soft financing and other incentives, including a property tax exemption, all integral to maintaining the project’s affordability. The financing will allow Carolyn Mosby Apartments to undergo both interior and exterior improvements, including updates to all electrical and plumbing fixtures to improve the energy efficiency and water usage throughout the property. Common residential areas for residents will be upgraded on each floor as well. Construction completion is expected in 2024.

CARMEL, Ind. – Leading financial services provider Merchants Capital today announces that Margaret Lehto has joined the firm as Chief Architect. She will be based out of the company’s Chicago office. Lehto is a demonstrated leader in the architectural industry, with expertise tied to verifying that affordable housing developments meet local, state and federal requirements. Her experience encompasses oversight of assessments, architectural and engineering design and construction administration for a wide variety of public and private sector clients and projects. She is a licensed architect in the states of Illinois and Wisconsin, a member of both the American Institute of Architects and the Association of Licensed Architects and she holds a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) professional accreditation. In her new role with Merchants, Lehto will be responsible for ensuring compliance with underwriting guidelines for debt and equity investments across the company. She will also manage the review of construction due diligence and third-party construction reports throughout the duration of all projects. Additionally, Lehto will use her skillset and knowledge of construction documentation and budget review to ensure projects are appropriately budgeted from the start so that Merchants and its customers will avoid critical issues that may arise later in the project life cycle. Prior to joining Merchants, Lehto’s over 20 years of experience included overseeing all aspects of architectural and engineering projects as well as design and construction services for thousands of affordable housing units and complexes across the Chicago metro area. Lehto is a graduate of Northwestern University with a bachelor’s degree, and she holds a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Illinois.

CHICAGO – The Chicago office of Merchants Capital is pleased to announce that it has closed a 221(d)(4) new construction/permanent loan for Metro 19 Apartments in Roselle, Illinois. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-insured loan will provide construction and permanent financing for 295 transit-oriented, multifamily units adjacent to the Roselle Metra commuter rail station situated half a mile east of the Main Street commercial district. Merchants Capital securitized the loan and worked closely with the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT), which purchased the Ginnie Mae-backed security that guarantees the timely payment of principal and interest on the Metro 19 loan. The HIT, a fixed-income, investment grade mutual fund, has a long history of working closely with for-profit and non-profit developers, housing agencies, members of the mortgage banking community, labor unions, HUD, government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) and others to structure the financing needed for their real estate developments. As a result of the HIT’s involvement, the luxury apartment complex will be 100% union built – a requirement on all construction-related projects financed by the HIT. “We are proud of everything that HIT and Merchants Capital have accomplished together. In addition to providing much-needed housing, Metro 19 is creating well-paying jobs for trained workers, making a difference to the broader economic health of the community,” said Chang Suh, CEO at AFL-CIO HIT. A key feature of this development, and a unique capability of the Merchants organization, was the ability to finance both the apartment building and an adjacent garage. This garage structure will provide 542 parking spaces for Metro 19 tenants and area commuters who use Metra trains to get to their places of employment. The garage component of the development involved multiple parties including a land swap that made it possible to assemble the land needed for the garage structure. Working with the Village of Roselle, Merchants Bank of Indiana (MBI) was able to provide the financing for this land assembly and construction loan. The loan will be repaid from revenues generated by property value appreciation under an existing Tax Increment Financing (TIF) in the East Irving Municipal District. “This project is exciting for our company, as it allowed us at Merchants Capital a unique opportunity to work in tandem with our colleagues at Merchants Bank of Indiana,” said Lee Oller, Executive Vice President and head of Merchants Capital’s Chicago office. “This complex transaction codified a land swap between Metra and the Village of Roselle to accommodate a parking garage for apartment residents and Metra commuters. The new complex will bring much needed residential units to the area, and we are honored to have been a part of the development project.” “Merchants’ unique ability to originate both the HUD-insured loan on the apartment building, and Bank financing on the parking garage, gave us the flexibility to meet the financing requirements of the various stakeholders and help make the overall development possible,” said Emmett Donovan, Senior Vice President at Merchants Capital. “Metro 19 gave us a chance to finance an important property that will bring nearly 300 housing units to the suburbs of Chicago. We look forward to growing our developer partnerships across the Midwest so that we can continue to provide even greater access to housing for residents across the region.” This is the second HUD-insured project Merchants has financed with the developer, Avgeris and Associates. The five-story building is designed around a central courtyard and amenities include a business office, fitness center, golf simulator, dog spa, outdoor pool and enclosed rooftop lounge. The property will also receive a National Green Building Standard (NGBS) certification upon completion of construction. The green certification ensures that the property will operate at peak energy efficiency, reducing utility costs for both the developer and building residents. Construction is underway with leasing anticipated to begin in late 2023. “We couldn’t be more excited about our Metro 19 Apartment development in downtown Roselle. This high-end building in a TOD location will be an excellent addition to the other luxury apartment communities in our portfolio. Our residents love being able to walk or bike to public transportation, restaurants, shops and local nightlife. We are excited to have broken ground on the Metro 19 development. It would not have been possible without the hard work and strong support from the Village of Roselle, HUD, the AFL-CIO HIT, METRA, and of course Merchants Capital and Merchants Bank of Indiana,” said Tim Knudson, Vice President at Avgeris and Associates. ###

CARMEL, Ind. – Leading financial services provider Merchants Capital (MCC), along with Merchants Bank of Indiana (MBI), announces today that it has completed a $214 million Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS) securitization of 14 multifamily mortgage loans secured by 24 mortgaged properties through a Freddie Mac-sponsored Q-Series transaction. This is MCC’s second such transaction – last year, MCC secured a $262 million Q-Series transaction, which consisted of 15 workforce housing properties owned and operated by some of MCC’s biggest clients. Unlike the previous transaction, 100% of the securities were guaranteed by Freddie Mac and sold to the market. MCC will continue to sub-service the loans in the pool. The $214 million in loans consisted of 14 multifamily properties in Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, New York and Ohio. The developments range in size from 60 to 352 units. On a weighted average basis, the portfolio had 93.7% of units under 80% area median income (AMI), 52.1% of units under 60% AMI and 26.8% of units under 50% AMI. Several properties were made possible by low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The collateral pool is all seven-year capped adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), a new product for the platform. Due to the characteristics of the underlying mortgage loans, the certificates are designated as “Social Bonds” within the Social Bonds Framework, published on Freddie Mac’s website. Proceeds from Social Bonds are used to provide liquidity to social impact financial institutions (community development financial institutions, housing finance agencies and other financial institutions), such as MBI. These social impact financial institutions finance affordable housing to low-income communities and underserved populations consistent with the Social Bonds Framework. Freddie Mac engaged Sustainalytics, Inc., an affiliate of Morningstar, Inc., to independently evaluate the Social Bonds Framework. MCC has also created its own ESG Social Bonds Framework for use in their future deals, aligning with the four core components of the Social Bond Principles from Freddie Mac, and similarly evaluated by Sustainalytics. The ongoing assessment is based on the use of proceeds, project evaluation and selection, management of proceeds and reporting.

CARMEL, Ind. – Leading financial services provider Merchants Capital today announces the company has earned a top-ranking position on the prestigious Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Commercial/Multifamily Originators listing, ranking in as the #3 affordable multifamily lender nationwide in 2021 – up from #4 last year. In total, Merchants Capital closed $3.7 billion in multifamily and affordable loans across 300 transactions, with an average transaction size of $12.3 million. This ranking follows suit with a historic year for the company, closing nearly $7 billion in debt financing across its six regional offices in 2021 and shattering the firm’s previous record of $4.7 billion set in 2020. Merchants’ affordable housing debt production comprised $3.7 billion of the total $7 billion, representing a 50% increase year over year. In New York specifically, the firm provided approximately $1.15 billion in debt financing in 2021 for affordable housing development and preservation within the region, earning the company recognition as a top multifamily affordable housing financier in the area. The MBA report is a comprehensive set of listings of 141 different commercial/multifamily mortgage originators, their 2021 volumes and the different roles they play. The report presents origination volumes in more than 140 categories, including by role, investor group, property type, financing structure type and the location of the originating office. It is available for purchase through MBA’s Online Store. To learn more about Merchants Capital and its services, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

NEW YORK – The New York office of leading financial services provider Merchants Capital today announces it has provided more than $104 million in financing for Harlem River Houses and the adjacent Harlem River II Campus, collectively known as Harlem River Houses I and II. The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) property dates back to the 1930s and represents a significant milestone in public housing as one of the first two properties in New York funded, developed and owned by the federal government. Constructed in 1936 and debuting in 1937, Harlem River Houses was built as an attempt to amend the poor housing opportunities for African American residents in the Harlem neighborhood. At the time, public housing was segregated in New York City and the limited options available to African Americans were deteriorating and significantly overcrowded. As such, construction of Harlem River Houses served great importance to many local residents by offering affordable and safe housing at a time when other options were scarce. In 1979 after 42 years in service, Harlem River Houses was recognized on the National Register of Historic Places for both its noteworthy architecture and social history in the New York City community. Located between West 151st Street and West 153rd Street along Harlem River Drive and Macombs Place, Harlem River Houses currently features 690 apartments offered at 100% affordability to low-income residents in the area. Upon renovation, the property will offer 693 apartments spread across eight residential buildings that house more than 1,400 residents. Merchants Capital provided more than $104 million on behalf of a joint venture between the Settlement Housing Fund and West Harlem Group Assistance to support comprehensive renovation of the properties. The financing structure consisted of a straight-to-permanent New York City Housing Development Corporation (NYCHDC) Freddie Mac Risk Share loan crafted by the NYCHDC, Freddie Mac and Merchants Capital. To date, Merchants has provided nearly $480 million in financing towards more than 3,300 units as part of the NYCHA PACT projects throughout New York City. As the largest public housing authority in North America, NYCHA is home to 1 in 15 New Yorkers. Rehabilitation to the property is expected to begin this spring, and the renovation is expected to be completed between 2024 and 2025. Renovations will include upgrades to apartments, common areas, elevators, security and heating systems. Upgrades in units will include new kitchens, bathrooms, floors and appliances along with updates to windows and building exteriors. Sidewalks, gardens and sculptures within the property grounds will be restored and new playgrounds, benches and activity spaces will be installed for residents' use. Additionally, all electrical, mechanical and plumbing systems will be renovated or replaced. “We are so excited to get to work on the restoration of Harlem River Houses,” said Alexa Sewell, President of Settlement Housing Fund, Inc. “This investment is a huge win for public housing, for the neighborhood, and most importantly, for the residents of Harlem River Houses. We wouldn’t be here without the creativity and tenacity of the Merchants team.” To learn more about Merchants Capital and its services, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and Instagram.

CARMEL, Ind. – Leading financial services company Merchants Capital today announces that Darren King has joined the firm as Vice President of Capital Markets. With more than 20 years of real estate experience, King is a recognized authority in the industry, possessing substantial knowledge in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), commercial real estate (CRE) and structured products. Darren King King joins Merchants Capital from Trepp, where he served as head of CMBS, responsible for product management. Prior to this role, he held a senior position as a CRE credit specialist at Davidson Kempner Capital Management and served as a portfolio manager at both Semper Capital Management and Jerica Capital Management. He also served as an executive director at UBS Investment Bank where he focused on CMBS trading and capital markets. In his new role, King will focus on expanding Merchants Asset Management, a New York-based registered investment advisor, which is focused on the launch of several bridge loan debt funds and new permanent financing products. King holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Virginia and is based out of the company’s New York office. To learn more about Merchants Capital and its services, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

NEW YORK – The New York office of leading financial services provider Merchants Capital today announces the company provided approximately $1.15 billion in debt financing during 2021 for affordable, multifamily and senior housing preservation and development within the region, earning recognition as a top housing financer in the New York area. The milestone reflects Merchants Capital New York’s continued success and expansion into a diverse base of offerings for clients, including on-book, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan products. Merchants’ lending volume extends to a broad swath of affordable projects, including acquisition, preservation and new construction loans for 4%, 9%, Section 8, public, supportive and mixed-income housing projects. Merchants Capital New York is one of Merchants’ six production hubs nationwide, in addition to Indianapolis, Chicago, Saint Paul, Boston and Washington, D.C., which opened in 2021. To learn more about Merchants Capital and its services, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

CARMEL, Ind. – Merchants Capital closed a record $7 billion in debt production in 2021, shattering the firm’s previous record of $4.7 billion in financing in 2020. The firm achieved explosive growth in all product offerings, including a 72% increase in FHA financing to $1.97 billion, a 143% increase in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac production approaching $1 billion, and a 65% increase in Merchants Bank balance sheet financing with over $4 billion in volume in 2021. The firm’s affordable housing debt production soared to $3.1 billion, representing a 50% increase year over year. This announcement follows the 2020 honor from the Mortgage Bankers Association that recognized Merchants Capital as the #4 multifamily affordable lender nationwide. Merchants Capital strives to deploy innovative financing structures in multifamily housing, including affordable housing, workforce, market-rate, and luxury development across the United States. Merchants Capital is headquartered in Indianapolis, with five additional production hubs nationwide located in Boston, Chicago, New York City, Saint Paul and Washington, D.C. Since 2019, Merchants’ staff has grown by 83% as the firm has added additional product offerings and opened regional offices in Washington D.C. and Boston. To learn more about Merchants Capital and to view open positions, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

CARMEL, Ind.  – Leading financial services provider Merchants Capital announced today it has arranged $13 million in debt financing and $7.2 million in equity financing to support the renovation and redevelopment of Adcock Joyner Apartments in Oakland, California. The mixed-use property is a historic development, originally constructed in 1915 as a hotel and converted into affordable housing in the early 1990s. Situated at 532 16th St. in the heart of downtown Oakland, Adcock Joyner provides housing for residents earning no greater than 50% or 60% of the area median income (AMI). The property features 25 studio and 25 one-bedroom apartments with excellent walkability to Oakland’s public transportation and major thoroughfares. The first floor of the mixed-used development features more than 2,500 square feet of commercial space occupied by a local nonprofit that helps homeless, poor and disabled individuals achieve health and self-sufficiency. To finance the renovation, Merchants Capital provided more than $20 million in total debt and equity financing, which will fully fund the project through the 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. Following completion of the renovation, the property will operate under a new Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contract covering 100% of the revenue-generating units, ensuring the property will remain affordable for residents in the years to come. “Right now, the need for quality, affordable housing is exponential in the U.S. but especially in the state of California,” said Eddie Dietrick, Vice President at Merchants Capital. “With our full-service lending platform, we are able to better serve the needs of our clients and support their work in revitalizing affordable housing properties across the country. We are grateful to have partnered on this project and look forward to expanding Merchants’ presence along the West Coast.” “The California housing market is truly unlike any other in the country, and we are thrilled to showcase Merchants’ commitment to the area by serving as the financier for this important redevelopment project,” said Linda Hill, Executive Vice President of Tax Credit Equity at Merchants Capital. “We are working to expand our presence nationally and having the opportunity to partner on such a significant California property is a step in the right direction for our company.” Significant renovations will be made in each residential unit, including upgrades to all kitchen surfaces and appliances, all bathroom surfaces and fixtures, plumbing, flooring, electrical updates and more. Exterior renovations include repairs to the building’s fire escape, new roofing, new HVAC units, elevator upgrades, enhanced security systems and more. The first-floor commercial space will be reconfigured and renovated, with new kitchen cabinets, fixtures and flooring among others. “We are excited about the project and our partnership with Merchants Capital and Progressive Affordable Development,” said James Hill, President of Adcock Joyner Preservation. “This renovation helps us continue our long-term objective of providing stable affordable housing in the downtown Oakland sector. We value our relationship with Merchants Capital and are most grateful for the expertise and support provided while we bring our vision into reality.” Renovation to the property began in November 2021 and is expected to be completed by January 2023. To learn more about Merchants Capital and its services, visit www.merchantscapital.com or find Merchants Capital on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.