Episode 22 - Doug Childers

Doug Childers (HFF) on housing tax credits. What happens when the government utilizes market forces to reinvigorate its public housing programs? For decades, publicly subsidized affordable housing was an underutilized aspect of commercial real estate. This all changed in 1986 with the introduction of the Section 42 Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program that incentivized private developers and investors to work together to modernize the US’s public housing infrastructure. To give you an idea of the scale of this program, our guest advises that over 50% of the rental units in America today have component of section 42 tax incentives. Doug Childers, Managing Director at HFF’s Atlanta office (formerly, Holliday Fenoglio Fowler), sits down with Phil and Raul to discuss LIHTC and other tax incentive programs. In his 10 plus years in the industry, Doug has been in involved in the disposition of over 1 billion dollars in affordable housing assets throughout the country including Parkway Gardens on Chicago’s south side. Doug takes Phil and Raul through the hurdles of affordable housing transactions and how LIHTC has incentivized companies, like Google, to get involved in the affordable housing tax credit market. Doug discusses how he built his book of business as a broker and finds leads. Doug also shares his experience working in the Atlanta Braves clubhouse during their dynasty years and the genius of Bobby Cox.