Centra Villa is a 132-unit affordable housing development located just a few miles from the Fort McPherson VA Clinic in Atlanta, GA. The city is using a housing model that leverages social impact capital to create permanent, supportive housing for veterans experiencing homelessness.
The Challenge
- The lack of permanent, supportive housing is a huge barrier to housing veterans experiencing homelessness in Atlanta
- The COVID-19 pandemic strained the housing stability of many financially vulnerable individuals and families
- Despite a clear need to immediately address the impending housing and homelessness crisis, communities struggled to identify ways to effectively secure funds to purchase and adapt properties that can provide housing stability for veterans in need
Our Goals
- Connect veterans experiencing homelessness to quality housing with improved access to support services
- Create and preserve more affordable housing in the Atlanta area through a faster and more flexible approach that can meet both immediate and long-term housing needs
Our Approach
Community Solutions closed on the Centra Villa Apartments in Feb. 2021, using a pioneering form of social impact investment:
- $12 million total cost to purchase and upgrade the property
- $2.6 million of grant funding (HomeFirst permanent supportive housing grant)
- $7.6 million mortgage (Fannie Mae)
- $1.8 million social impact loan (Atlanta Affordable Housing Fund)
- Social impact loan was raised from an organization dedicated to financing Atlanta-based affordable housing projects
- The property was acquired through a single-purpose LLC.
- Centra Villa will use a model of mixed affordability similar to the Abrigo Apartments.
- As units turn over, they will be converted into permanent affordable housing for veterans experiencing homelessness using HUD-VASH vouchers and other forms of rental assistance.
- The remainder will continue to be leased at market rents.
- Units will be converted until the project reaches a 50/50 mix of affordable and market rate units.
Community Solutions integrates its “property management plus” model to provide enhanced property management to keep tenants housed and add needed services.
- TI Asset Management will serve as property manager. They are an Atlanta-based, property management company that has managed over 3,000 units in the metro area, including permanent supportive housing projects. The company will assist in our implementation of property management plus.
- Tenanting for the veteran units will be coordinated through Open Doors, a non-profit organization that annually places nearly a thousand formerly homeless individuals across the metro Atlanta area.
