About Us

CYPRESS HOUSING GROUP

Providers of Affordable Housing

Philosophy

to increase the supply of quality affordable housing for low- and very

low-income households by:

improving the quality and long-term affordability of the existing

housing stock;

constructing new housing utilizing existing programs available

through local, state and federal programs; and

creating new housing from adaptive reuse of non-residential

properties such as warehouses, outmoded commercial

buildings and non-performing commercial hotels

Programs

Cypress Housing Group implements this philosophy by acting in a

variety of capacities to provide or assist in providing such housing.

The programs which Cypress Housing Group provides include:

Acting directly as a developer of low-income housing to expand

and preserve long term, quality affordable housing stock

Serving as a capacity builder, seeking to increase the

resources and capabilities of local community organizations to

increase the available affordable housing

Providing technical assistance to other organizations for the

implementation of improvement projects or community service

programs located within the housing developments in which the

Cypress Housing Group is involved

Acting as a joint venture partner to a for-profit housing developer

in need of Cypress Housing Group's expertise and access to

capital

Implementation

Cypress Housing Group is an organization which can make housing

happen within reasonable time periods. Too often, not-for-profit

organizations have goals which are not clearly focused enough or

lack the requisite expertise to carry out their mission of delivering

affordable housing to a community. Cypress Housing Group and its

officers and directors bring an extensive background and experience

in the area of affordable housing to bear on the complex problems

surrounding the planning and implementation of providing adequate

low-income housing to communities. It has the resources and the

knowledge to use such resources to make quality low-income

housing available to communities within the shortest possible time

frames consistent with the creating of quality communities.

It has the ability to source, secure, receive and administer funds from

public or private sources. Securing such financing is fundamental to

the success of any project and is an area in which Cypress Housing

Group has considerable expertise. The development of successful

housing communities in today's marketplace demands the

integration of public and private sources of capital in order to provide

for the long-term viability of the communities being created. Cypress

Housing Group understands this need and provides for its projects

and to other organizations similarly engaged, the knowledge

necessary to access public grants, public below market interest rate

loans, private construction and permanent financing, equity capital

and various forms of tax credits and property tax abatements.

Cypress Housing Group is familiar with, and, through its staff and

directors, provides the knowledge and experience to effectively

respond to the political realities facing the development of affordable

housing. It can meet with local government bodies, explain the

needs of the community, respond to concerns which are raised and

to work with local organizations and politicians to achieve the

common goal of increasing quality housing available for low-income

residents.

Its familiarity and extensive background in the management of

affordable housing, tax credit projects and otherwise rent restricted

units can mean the difference between success and failure of a

project. Architectural aesthetics, housing liveability, proximity to

services, local weather and climate, attributes of the tenant

populations being served, staffing, competition, financial reporting,

community programs and other factors are all important to secure

the on-going success of any rental community and Cypress Housing

Group understands this and can provide the guidance for less

experienced for-profit or not-for-profit organizations required to ensure

a successful project.

Development Expertise

Cypress Housing Group, through the backgrounds and extensive

experience of its officers and directors, has the required development

expertise to conceive a project and to see it through the often

complex and convoluted development process.

The officers and directors, during their careers, have assisted others

in all aspects of the development for over 100 properties, many of

which were for low-income tenants and which were financed through

the Farmer's Home Administration (Section 515 program), the U.S.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (Sections 221(d)(3),

221(d)(4), 236), state housing agency programs, and the current tax

credit program authorized under Section 42 of the Internal Revenue

Code. Many of the projects also received rental assistance funds,

project based or voucher Section 8 subsidies, or had units that were

rent restricted and required tenant incomes to be verified.

Direct supervisory experience of the directors and staff of Cypress

Housing Group which relates to the development process includes

Site Selection

Construction

Zoning Variances

Rent-Up

Market Feasibility

Property Management

Project Design

Asset Management

Permit Process

Securing Equity

Securing Tax Credits

Compliance Monitoring

Securing Grants

Income Certification

Securing Loans

Joint Ventures

Bond Financing

Limited Partnerships

Management Expertise

Perhaps more than any other aspect of the housing process, the

ability to provide top management expertise can make the difference

between the success and failure of a project. Cypress Housing

Group has the required property management, asset management,

project management and financial management expertise to help

bring about the initial and long-term success of a project.

Property Management

The combined experience of the officers, directors and staff of

the organization includes the direct supervision of the property

management process for a wide variety of residential real estate

communities including those created through the Farmer's

Home Administration (Section 515 program), the U.S.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (Sections

221(d)(3), 221(d)(4), 236), state housing agency programs, the

low-income housing tax credit program and conventionally

financed apartments. This experience includes the selection

and monitoring of resident managers, dealing with tenant

concerns and problems, project operation and maintenance,

governmental reporting and compliance, legal issues,

budgeting, rent-up, rental increases or decreases, minority

contracting, special needs of specific tenant groups served by

projects (such as large families, physically disadvantaged

persons and senior citizens).

Asset Management

In today's world, and particularly for long term real estate

projects, the management of the asset is a key concern.

Cypress Housing Group is familiar with the variety of ownership

structures and required reporting requirements for joint ventures,

limited partnerships, general partnerships, corporations and

limited liability companies. It also has extensive experience in

securing adequate insurance for properties, dealing with

inevitable fire loss and liability claims and in monitoring the level

and adequacy of replacement reserves for a project and the

disbursement of such funds to keep the project in a good level

of repair.

Project Management

Successfully coordinating the activities of the architect,

contractor, government agencies, lenders and owners can

make the difference between a successful project or one that

fails. Achieving a harmonious union of efforts of these

participants in the development process demand the level of

skill possessed by Cypress Housing Group. Its officers,

directors and staff have assisted companies and individuals in

this process for over 20 projects during the past 20 years.

Financial Management

Financing

Management of the funding process for a project can be a

complex task. Often an affordable housing project will need

several different sources of funds such as construction

financing, permanent financing, so-called soft second

mortgages or other below market interest rate debt secured

from public agencies, bond financing and equity. Each of these

sources of funds usually comes from a different source each of

which has its separate and distinct requirements, application

procedures and funding time frames. Cypress Housing Group

is familiar with each of these sources and how they interact to

provide the required money required to construct or rehabilitate

structures to provide housing. The organization provides, either

itself, or through its advisors and consultants, access to such

capital and the ability to deliver it in a timely fashion to a project

to make it successful.

Reporting and Insurance

After the successful completion of the construction and rent-up

of a project, the on-going financial reporting requirements can

be equally as daunting. Cypress Housing Group provides the

expertise for its own projects and for other organizations on a

consultation basis to engage and coordinate annual financial

audits and tax returns. In addition, it can provide valuable

assistance in securing adequate fire and liability insurance and

in dealing with claims arising from accidents or fire damage to

property.

Support

Cypress Housing Group is supported in its efforts to provide quality

affordable housing by several sources of funding. These include

grants from public agencies, private contributions and fees for

services rendered to projects and their sponsors. The organization

assists profit and not-for-profit housing sponsors in the development

and management of their projects and develops projects by itself. It

receives compensation for such services and development activities

which it uses to pay for its staff and those rendering services to it.

Cypress Housing Group uses some of this money to assist others in

the complicated housing process by making grants, donations, and

below market loans to other organizations with similar goals and

objectives.

Officers and Directors

Mark Miller, President

Marilyn Belter, Controller

Jolanta Wysocka, Chairman of the Board

Mark Cox, Director

Rebecca Quimby, Director