Views from the Northwest Bronx

UNHP NonProfit of the Year & 2024 Highlights!

University Neighborhood Housing Program made significant strides towards our mission to create and preserve affordable housing and bring resources to our Bronx community in 2024.  New partnerships to improve distressed multifamily housing, the opening of a credit union in the Bronx, and the renovation and repositioning of Rose Hill Apartments, an affordable housing project for low-income senior citizens are among the year’s major highlights. The pinnacle moment of 2024 came in December as UNHP was named Nonprofit of the Year by the New York Housing Conference!  The NY Housing Conference created a short video that shares the work that brought about the award and more highlights from 2024 are outlined below.

Community Development

This year’s highlight of our community development work is the completed renovation and financial repositioning of Rose Hill Apartments, a 119-unit senior citizen affordable housing project located on the edge of the Fordham University campus. UNHP brought together a financial and renovation package that achieved several objectives, including closing out the expiring Low Income Tax Housing Credit (LIHTC) and converting to 100% nonprofit ownership, performing required façade work, undertaking weatherization improvements and upgrades, and exploring the installation of solar technology and battery backup for the property. In addition to about $500,000 in Local Law 11 facade work that included pointing, brick replacement, and lintel repairs; significant energy conservation work, and upgrades were also completed in 2024.  An awarded grant by the NWBCCC NYS Weatherization Program for full window replacement in units, hallways, and the community room, LED unit and public area lighting, complete mechanical ventilation replacement at roof motors and vents, and new refrigerators for tenants will provide needed upgrades, at very little cost to the project. The $500,000 in weatherization improvements to the property come largely as a grant because the building meets the low-income tenancy requirements of the NYS-funded program. The weatherization upgrades included full window replacement in units, hallways, and the community room, LED unit and public area lighting, complete mechanical ventilation replacement at roof motors and vents, and new refrigerators for tenants. The Richman Group, the investor of  LIHTC was paid off at the December 27th closing and the limited partnership is now 100% non-profit owned. UNHP is working with Bellwether Enterprise and the 223F program to refinance existing debt on the building and funding reserves to support the building over the next 30 years. The 223 Federal Loan program allows for long-term mortgages (up to 35 years) financed with Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA) Mortgage-Backed Securities. This eligibility for purchase in the secondary mortgage market improves the availability of loan funds and permits more favorable interest rates.

In 2024 UNHP received a grant from the MetLife Foundation to explore adding solar photovoltaic energy to Rose Hill Apartments and a battery-powered backup energy system.  With the grant, UNHP engaged Crauderoff consultants to undertake a solar and storage resilience study. The study found that the use of solar panels and battery storage is feasible on the site and would result in close to $50,000 a year in electrical cost savings as well as supply power in the event of an outage. Given the vulnerability of the senior citizen and the disabled tenancy of the building, power outages could be life-threatening due to the loss of critical systems, including elevator access, air-conditioned and heated space, and refrigeration. Increased extreme weather events have become more common as a result of climate change and UNHP is committed to addressing the threat in Rose Hill Apartments. 2025 will see the completion of the 223F loan and fundraising towards the installation of solar panels and storage backup. 

Multifamily Research and Action Center

Our 2024 multifamily preservation work was built upon our efforts in 2023 to bring attention to the large multifamily rental portfolio mortgaged by Signature Bank at the time of its collapse, share the extent of the portfolio with lawmakers and the FDIC, and call out the need for preservation.  UNHP’s Building Indicator Project data and research played a significant role, becoming a central part of the conversation around Signature’s extensive multifamily portfolio immediately after the bank’s collapse. UNHP’s BIP and its ability to identify the senior lender for multifamily properties pinpointed Signature’s exact portfolio at its collapse. UNHP shared that information with the FDIC, electeds, and community organizations. UNHP joined the New York Housing Conference and U.S. Representative Ritchie Torres in a press conference in April of 2023 shortly after the collapse. The FDIC later singled out our early interventions in Signature’s collapse, as “UNHP’s moment” – and sealed our selection by the NY Housing Conference as nonprofit of the year.  UNHP has remained engaged with the FDIC, community organizations, public agencies, and lenders to improve and preserve this portfolio. 

Highlights of this work in 2024 include

• Increased tenant and community-based engagement about multifamily finance, tenant acquisition models, and the complexity of the new financing structure with FDIC oversight of the Signature properties through the Bronx Housing Research Network.
• Working with JustFix created the  Signature Data Dashboard, an easy-to-use tool that includes all Signature properties in the Joint Venture portfolio targeted for intervention by the FDIC. It will be used by all stakeholders, including tenant groups, to track progress toward improvement and preservation goals.
• UNHP’s inclusion in the Community Stabilization Partners ( CSP) Roundtable, a group created by the CPC/Related Joint Venture partners comprised of advocates and government leaders who play a role in the long-term preservation of the multifamily properties formerly mortgaged by Signature Bank. UNHP also meets with the Santander Joint Venture group as well. Between the two joint ventures, there are 2,346 multifamily properties slated for improvement and financial stabilization.  These buildings span all five NYC boroughs and constitute all of the properties with likely rent-stabilized units in the former Signature-financed portfolio. 
• UNHP welcomes a new staff member to the Multifamily Research and Action team, Ana Peña. Ana is getting up to speed on the BIP database and part of the work behind the Bronx Housing Research Network (BHRN) to expand and deepen support to tenant leaders and advocates, and community organizing with technical assistance that shares our data, research, and community development experiences in an accessible manner.

Northwest Bronx Resource Center

The big 2024 news for the Northwest Bronx Resource Center is the opening of the Bronx People’s Credit Union branch on Intervale Avenue! Two short years ago, the Bronx Financial Access Coalition launched an effort in partnership with UNHP and three other effective Bronx nonprofits; Banana Kelly, Nos Quedamos, and Whedco, to expand financial access for Bronx residents. BxFAC enlisted the partnership of two other key partners; Webster Bank generously supporting the effort as a premier Sponsor and the Lower East Side People’s Federal Credit Union (LESPFCU) which expanded its reach to open a satellite credit union. Officially opened on December 9th, the Bronx People’s Federal Credit Union welcomed partner groups, members, and Bronx residents to use the branch services. Read more about the new Credit Union here. 

The opening of the Bronx People’s Credit Union capped a successful year for the NWBRC and its effort to bring resources to our Bronx community that build financial stability and housing security. The Northwest Bronx Resource Center working collaboratively with many effective partners offered 1:1 financial coaching, NYC Rent Freeze enrollment, affordable housing services, a monthly ASK UNHP Zoom webinar, financial empowerment workshops, and services to affordable housing tenants through Lobby Link.  Read more about our work with partners in 2024 here.  

2025 Resolutions

• Continue our effort to bring sustainable, carbon-reducing upgrades to our portfolio of Bronx affordable housing properties. UNHP will explore the retrofit opportunities available for solar, battery energy storage systems, electrification, energy conservation, and climate resiliency initiatives in multifamily buildings. In 2023, UNHP installed solar panels in 7 of our affordable properties.
• Move forward with our work to identify and address the issues that are jeopardizing affordable multifamily buildings in the Bronx through our work with the Bronx building operators, a group of about 15 affordable housing providers seeking to preserve the long-term affordability of over 15,000 combined units of housing. A loss of rental income, delays in the rent-up of vacant units, and increasing operating costs such as insurance, and water and sewer rates are causing financial distress in community-developed multifamily affordable housing.
• Support the efforts of Bronx Ahora, a group of frustrated affordable housing seekers who have been working together and with others to improve the affordable housing lottery, and deepen affordability levels.

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