What is Real Estate Development Boot Camp?
When CEDAM was formed in 1998, offering affordable training—specifically real estate development training—to community development organizations was, and still is, a main priority for us. Many of today’s seasoned affordable housing developers went through our Boot Camp training (which has taken on numerous names throughout the years,) and have ensured the success of affordable housing and other types of developments across the state.
Real Estate Development Boot Camp equips attendees with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate a complex industry and successfully pull together an affordable housing deal. During the course of this five-day training, attendees are led through the basics of affordable housing by Kirsten Elliott, VP of Development at Community Housing Network, and will also hear from more than 10 experts in the field.
After Kirsten establishes the foundation of the industry for attendees, she and experts will cover: site selection, development teams, development and operating proformas, legal structures, market analysis, community engagement, tax credit basics and calculating tax credits, property management, energy efficiency and more.
A crucial aspect of this training is each presenter’s ability to pull from a breadth of experience. Presenters use specific projects to illustrate concepts and also to point out both the common and the rare hurdles one may face at a given point in the development process.
Boot Camp also provides attendees with the opportunity to present a potential project from their own community to a funding panel comprised of individuals that fund or review LIHTC projects. This year, panelists include representatives from the Opportunity Resource Fund, MSHDA, Cinnaire, Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis (FHLBI) and more.
Who should attend Boot Camp?
Do you:
- Work for an organization that manages or develops affordable housing?
- See a need for affordable housing in your community and want to do something about it?
- Want to help transform Michigan communities by utilizing tax credits such as LIHTC, Historic, Brownfield or New Market?
If yes to any of the above, Boot Camp is for you!
What do past attendees have to say about Boot Camp?
“The Camp was a fast moving experience which was kept on track by our iron willed moderator… I learned more than enough to pitch my project to the local authorities… The most important aspect of the camp were the attendees. The networking opportunities were overwhelming. I tried to meet everybody and had a very interesting and informative time. Upon reflection the price for the entire experience was a bargain.”
- Tom Steffen, Grayling Main Street
“For me boot camp was a confirmation of the process of assembling an application and to see if it would be successful in an application funding round. The class helps and reassures that as a developer that you have the tools to build a strong foundation for a successful deal or to find out if it isn’t a viable project. Either way it provides you the knowledge to decipher out all of the aspects of the LIHTC funding rounds.”
- Holly Sweiss, Intrepid
“As a MSHDA employee meeting with local municipalities in Southeast Michigan doing outreach and talking about housing needs and increasing housing options, I thought it would be useful for me to have a little understanding of the process of putting together a deal, i.e. assembling a development team, types of housing, site selection criteria, etc. I truly enjoyed the Boot Camp and found it to be very valuable.”
- Pierre-Denise Gilliam, MSHDA
“CEDAM’s Real Estate Boot Camp was a great opportunity to learn the foundational knowledge required to begin developing affordable housing in Michigan. Not only were the lessons, presentations, and guest speakers extremely educational, meeting other developers – both experienced and novice – was one of the best elements of the training. Another hugely beneficial element of the training was presenting our “projects” to a few decision makers from around the state. Although the projects were hypothetical, it was a great experience to pitch our ideas and projects to those individuals who work so closely with the funds necessary to make our future developments a reality.”
- Dakota Riehl, Inner City Christian Federation
Learn more and register for Boot Camp.
Please contact Emily Reyst with any questions at emily@cedamichigan.org or 517.485.3588 ext. 1941.
