ANDP - Building, investing in and advocating for mixed income communities.

CRLIF News

CDFI Fund awards CRLIF $1,000,000

(October 2009) ANDP’s foreclosure response program got a critical boost with a recent grant of $1,000,000 from the U.S. Department of Treasury’s CDFI Fund. The funds were awarded to ANDP’s lending arm, the Community Redevelopment Loan and Investment Fund (CRLIF), to increase lending capital to affordable housing developers participating in the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), other foreclosure redevelopment programs, and multifamily tax credit projects.

CRLIF is committing funds to support the urgent capital needs of NSP recipients. As a result of this commitment, CRLIF is offering a new “NSP Bridge” loan product will assist NSP recipients with start-up capital, bridge needs, financing and leveraged debt. Given that NSP funding is a reimbursement based program, CRLIF’s NSP Bridge will provide quick access to capital to NSP sub-recipients to engage their foreclosure redevelopment programs.

CRLIF is a U.S. Treasury certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). The Treasury established the CDFI Fund to provide credit, capital and financial services to underserved populations and communities through CDFI organizations. This award was received from a special funding cycle made possible by Federal stimulus funds. CRLIF was the only entity in Georgia to receive a grant through this competitive cycle.

Press Release from the U.S. Treasury's CDFI Fund
List of Award Recipients

ANDP loan fund one of seven to receive national rating

ANDP’s loan fund, Community Redevelopment Loan & Investment Fund (CRLIF) has been rated by the CDFI Assessment and Ratings Service (CARS™). Investors that subscribe to CARS™ receive detailed analyses that assess the financial strength and performance and impact performance for each CDFI rated, augmenting the underwriting and monitoring of their investment in CRLIF.

Our loan fund is one of seven CDFIs from across the country rated by CARS™ in the first quarter of 2009. According to Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), that is nearly double the number of CDFIs rated compared to the same period last year, and brings the total number rated to 46.

“The continued growth in the number of CARS™ Ratings shows that the opportunity finance industry is committed to transparency and rigorous standards,” says Paige Chapel, Executive Vice President of CARS™. “The ratings provide a win-win both for investors who subscribe to the service and the CDFIs who elect to participate. Through their participation in CARS™, CRLIF is clearly demonstrating leadership in accountability and transparency,” she adds.

“The CARS™ rating benefits CRLIF in many ways,” said KC George, Senior Director for Housing Finance and Administration. “We have gained new insights into how we are viewed by investors, and we have a better understanding of what investors are looking for as they consider investments in the CDFI field,” he added. “While the ANDP loan fund has always held itself to the highest standards, the rigorous process of undergoing a CARS™ analysis has enhanced our operating standards even further,” George continued.

The CARS™ Ratings measure CDFIs in two areas. An impact performance rating assesses how well a CDFI can demonstrate that it is creating the benefits it promises for low-income and low-wealth people and communities, while the financial strength and performance rating uses a CAMEL (Capital, Assets, Management, Earnings, Liquidity) analysis to assess the CDFI’s overall creditworthiness based on an analysis of past financial performance, current financial strength, and apparent risk factors.

“Investors use CARS™ to evaluate and monitor investment opportunities among CDFIs,” said Mark Pinsky, Chairman of the CARS™ Board and President and CEO of Philadelphia-based Opportunity Finance Network. “If investors are wondering how a CDFI is handling the challenges of the current economy, CARS™ provides an objective, third party analysis of what the management team of a CDFI is doing to address risk.”

“Participation in CARS™ provides us with a valuable marketing tool. Now when we approach current and new investors and funders, we can demonstrate our commitment to transparency and rigorous performance standards,” says George

Investors who use CARS™ have indicated that the number and breadth of CDFIs rated makes it easier to compare CDFI performance based on a standard set of metrics when evaluating investment opportunities or monitoring a portfolio.

In addition to CRLIF, the six other CDFIs rated in the first quarter of 2009 are:
• Community First Fund (Lancaster, PA)
• Federation of Appalachian Housing Enterprises, Inc or FAHE (Berea, KY)
• National Development Council, Grow America Fund (New York, NY)
• Northern California Community Loan Fund (San Francisco, CA)
• Rural Community Assistance Corporation (West Sacramento, CA)
• Village Capital Corporation (Cleveland, OH)

The CARS™ service aims to achieve 100 ratings by the end of 2011. CDFIs elect to participate in the ratings program. Current CARS™ subscribers include national and regional banks, foundations, and socially responsible investors.

Investors and donors interested in learning more about the CARS™ rating process should contact K.C. George at (404) 420-1608 or kcgeorge@andpi.org.

Our Investors

CRLIF is capitalized through loans and grants from local, regional, and national funders. With this funding, CRLIF is able to actively engage in real estate development, which ultimately improves housing, social, and economic conditions in metropolitan Atlanta. Join us in recognizing these generous supporters.

The following companies and organizations are donors that have recently provided grant funding:

The following companies and organizations are investors who have made program related investments:

Our History

During the 1980s, suburban and rural housing needs multiplied, federal subsidies shrank and much of the banking system collapsed. Community development corporations (CDCs) were forced to make radical changes in order to obtain financing for their projects. Upon its creation, ANDP worked quickly to help fill the gap. ANDP's Housing Finance department, the organization's lending arm, was instrumental in providing much needed capital and technical assistance to CDCs.

Throughout the 1990s, the Housing Finance department provided ongoing loan products and servicing to many Atlanta area CDCs and nonprofits developers. In 1998, the organization made the decision to take its lending services to the next level with an application to the U.S. Department of Treasury's Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). In less than a year, the application was approved and Community Redevelopment Loan & Investment Fund (CRLIF) was created. CRLIF was the first nonprofit in the City of Atlanta to receive CDFI certification.

Since its inception, CRLIF has received numerous "Outstanding" ratings for its performance. CRLIF is also designated by the U.S. Treasury a Certified Development Entity (CDE), an officially recognized entity that has a primary mission of providing investment capital for low income communities.

Currently, CRLIF operates a loan fund of more than $11 million. CRLIF now offers construction, predevelopment, acquisition, and bridge loans to CDCs, nonprofit developers and for profit developers who are developing affordable or mixed income housing.

Frequently Asked Questions

For questions about rental rates, availability and other matters, please contact the apartment office directly and the phone numbers listed below.

What is a CDFI?

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) are private-sector, financial intermediaries with community development as their primary mission. While CDFIs share a common mission, they have a variety of structures and development lending goals. There are six basic types of CDFIs: community development banks, community development loan funds, community development credit unions, microenterprise funds, community development corporation-based lenders and investors, and community development venture funds. Community Redevelopment Loan and Investment Fund (CRLIF) operates as a community development loan fund that specializes in deploying capital into affordable housing, mixed income and mixed use projects throughout metropolitan Atlanta.

What loan products does CRLIF offer?

To improve access to capital for community redevelopment, CRLIF offers a variety of lending products to qualifying organizations. Products include: acquisition loans, pre-development loans, construction loans, bridge loans and lines of credit. Additionally, borrowers may choose to create a custom loan package combining two or more of the aforementioned products.

Who is eligible to apply for a CRLIF loan?

CRLIF provides financing only to community development corporations, nonprofit and for-profit housing developers that create affordable housing, mixed income and mixed use properties.

Technical Assistance: What if I need help during the loan application Process?

In addition to its lending activity, CRLIF also provides technical assistance to applicants who need such support. Many organizations who are applying for their first development loan often seek support from CRLIF in the form of training, assistance with financial applications, project development, loan packaging and deal brokering with other institutions. Click here to see how the CRLIF loan application process works.

Where can I obtain loan applications?

You may either request an information packet by calling CRLIF at (404) 522-2637, emailing crlif@andpi.org or download Microsoft Word versions of the applications here.