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For Immediate Release
Representative Cummings, Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley Join Freddie Mac, AIG SunAmerica and the Wishcamper Group to Celebrate $17.7 Million Renovation of Baltimore Apartments Affordable Housing for Elderly and Disabled Preserved at Waters Tower Apartments
McLean, VA - Representative Elijah Cummings and Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley joined Freddie Mac and other local and national partners today to celebrate the recently completed $17.7 million renovation of Waters Tower Apartments. The renovated complex features 203 units and provides much needed affordable housing for hundreds of elderly and disabled individuals in the City of Baltimore, Maryland. The unique, two-year renovation effort minimized disruption for residents, most of whom were able to stay at the property while their units were modernized.
"I applaud Freddie Mac and each of their partners for helping to provide hundreds of Baltimore seniors and disabled with completely modernized housing," said Congressman Elijah Cummings. "Waters Tower is a great example of how citizens benefit when public and private entities work together toward a common goal."
Waters Tower was acquired and rehabilitated for a total cost of $17.7 million. The complex transaction was designed to provide funds sufficient to finance the substantial rehabilitation of the property while at the same time retaining the benefits of federal subsidy programs — a Section 8 rent subsidy and Section 236 Interest Reduction Payments. Multiple public and private entities worked closely together to see the project through to its finish: Freddie Mac provided a forward commitment for tax-exempt bond credit enhancement through its Program Plus® Seller/Servicer Capri Capital Finance. The bonds were issued by the Maryland Community Development Administration (CDA). AIG SunAmerica also helped to finance the renovations by purchasing the low-income housing tax-credits through one of its syndicated tax-credit funds. The Wishcamper Group of Portland, Maine, served as the general partner and developer of the project.
"We are proud to help provide more than 200 Baltimore seniors and disabled residents with modern, comfortable housing. The Waters Tower project demonstrates how we can leverage the availability of federal funds and the flexibility of our Multifamily Forward Commitment product to keep rents affordable," said Bob Tsien, senior vice president of loan production in Freddie Mac's Multifamily Division. "Preserving affordable rental housing and improving the quality of life for residents is an important part of our mission."
"The success of the Waters Tower renovation is the result of an innovative financing structure and of the commitment of experienced financing partners," said Brian Poulin, a Partner in The Wishcamper Group. "We were pleased to work with Freddie Mac, AIG SunAmerica and Capri Capital to improve the quality of Waters Tower and maintain its affordability for the residents."
Since the introduction of the Freddie Mac Program Plus network of multifamily loan originators and servicers in 1993, Freddie Mac has provided financing for over 20,000 multifamily properties totaling more than $55 billion. That volume represents nearly two million rental units across the country, a large portion of which are affordable to people whose income levels are at or below area median income — including newly established households, single-parent households, large family households, seniors, as well as other renters.
Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation established by Congress in 1970 to support homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac purchases single-family and multifamily residential mortgages and mortgage-related securities, which it finances primarily by issuing mortgage passthrough securities and debt instruments in the capital markets. Over the years, Freddie Mac has opened the doors for one in six homebuyers.
