Housing Partnership Network

Last week we awarded Larry Swanson the inaugural Robert B. Whittlesey Leadership Award at #HPNSeattle. The honor is bestowed to someone who embodies true leadership, embraces innovation and creativity, and cultivates engagement across our network – all of which represent the legacy of the award’s namesake. Bob Whittlesey founded three nonprofits (including HPN) and is widely regarded as one of the great unsung heroes of affordable housing – a tenacious and inspiring leader who died at 101 in 2023. Larry’s impact goes far beyond bricks and mortar. He has been a generous mentor, dynamic field catalyst, and staunch advocate for programs, policies, and investments to make housing more affordable and accessible. He was the major architect from the membership side of one of our first social enterprises – the Housing Partnership Insurance Exchange (HPIEx), a member-owned insurance captive. Larry was HPIEx’s first board chair and also served as HPN’s board chair for six years. Coincidentally, the member meeting marked the 20th anniversary of HPIEx, celebrating two decades of impact and partnership with IMA Financial Group, Inc., who worked closely with Larry and HPN staff to launch the enterprise. IMA supported the dinner at the Seattle Art Museum that commemorated the anniversary and celebrated Larry.  Larry will be stepping down as CEO of ACTION-Housing, Inc. after 45 years once his successor is appointed early this summer. Read his parting words to members and celebrate his “gifts” – to and from the field: https://lnkd.in/gAaufFxb

Big thanks to everyone who attended the Networking Conference hosted by Housing Partnership Network in #Seattle, and those who chose to attend our historic preservation walkthrough and panel at Mercy Magnuson. We so appreciated your thoughtful questions, conversation, and insight. #MercyHousingNorthwest #AffordableHousing #PreservingHomes #Seattle

I am excited to have been invited as a speaker at the recent CHAM - Consortium for Housing and Asset Management conference, where we discussed recruitment, building your bench, asset management, and affordable housing. It was an incredible opportunity to talk about building a strong, diverse talent pipeline of college students to become the next industry leaders. A special thank you to my co-panelist and facilitators: Kimberly Moore, Kristina Tatroe, Myriam Weaver, and Izaac Singh. Your insights and contributions made this event a success. Thank you to everyone who participated and supported event! #Recruitment#BuildingYourBench#AssestManagement#AffordableHousing#DiverseTalent#Leadership#FutureLeaders#IndustryLeaders#NextGenTalentAcademy Housing Partnership Network

Check out the lessons and ideas exchanged by members and over 220 leaders in the #affordablehousing and #communitydevelopment sector who gathered at our Spring 2024 Member Meeting earlier this month! #HPNSeattle   Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gqY6FQJj

The multifamily development sector is one of many around the country expected to benefit from the IRA’s unprecedented investments to make older homes healthier, more efficient, and cheaper to operate – an integral piece of the national and global goal to lower harmful emissions and fight climate change. Our green and health communities director, Adam Meier, was tapped to lend his expertise for Enterprise Community Partners's latest blog exploring how the sector is navigating retrofits of existing multifamilies. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gvnURQM9

Congratulations on 60 years, The Community Builders, Inc.!

At our Spring Member Meeting in Seattle earlier this month, HPN members elected three new directors to our board of directors. Our board is comprised of senior leaders from HPN's member organizations who work closely with staff and member-driven committees to guide our programs, policies, and activities.    Congratulations to Paul Bernard (Affordable Homes & Communities (AHC)), Sara Morgan (Fahe), and Margaret Salazar (REACH Community Development) for being elected to HPN’s board!  We appreciate your continued commitment and dedication to the Network and look forward to your contributions over the next four years.     Learn more about our new board members on our website. #HPNSeattle  https://lnkd.in/e8VkyKyU 

At REACH, we believe in the power of collaboration to forge pathways to stronger, more resilient communities. Last week's Housing Partnership Network meeting in Seattle was a testament to that belief. 🤝 We were grateful to catch up with our peers at Community Roots Housing who share our commitment to innovation in affordable housing. Together, we exchanged ideas that will undoubtedly spark transformative solutions in our neighboring cities. Join other supporters in championing this cause. Let's continue to build a future where everyone has a place to call home. #AffordableHousing #CommunityDevelopment #HPNSEA

We are tremendously grateful for having gathered 220 staff, from more than 65 member organizations, including 35 CEOs, at our Spring Member Meeting last week in Seattle, WA.    Together we explored several #affordablehousing developments in neighborhoods throughout the region and learned from community development leaders, including the industry-leading Sound Transit agency, Plymouth Housing – innovating in permanent supportive housing, and HomeSight – dedicated to advancing Black homeownership.   Member’s voices and experiences were featured across nine in-depth concurrent sessions on the most important challenges and opportunities in our industry, while celebrating our commitment to collaboration and the Network's accomplishments at the beautiful Seattle Art Museum.    Thank you to our lead sponsor, Wells Fargo, and other partners, IMA Financial Group, Inc., AAFCPAs, and Smith NMTC Associates, LLC, for their support of our member meeting. And, to our members Bellwether Housing, BRIDGE Housing Corporation, Community Roots Housing, and Mercy Housing Northwest, for hosting us! #HPNSeattle   We look forward to sharing key learnings and takeaways over the next several weeks and reconvening our membership at our Fall Member Meeting in Austin, TX (12/04 – 12/06).    https://lnkd.in/ef-9GSQ5

We are excited to partner with Housing Partnership Network to announce the launch of the Summer 2024 (Affordable Housing) Next Gen Talent Academy powered by Project Destined. Through this live, 7-week program students will attend interactive speaker sessions with sector leaders, financial modeling workshops, skill-building sessions and site visits, providing participants with exposure to early career opportunities in Affordable Housing. See our students in action with program partner Eden Housing, Inc. in the video below. Apply here today: https://lnkd.in/d7zwKTbQ Special thanks to Housing Partnership Network, Robin Hughes, Cindy Auguste, Sherry Burton, PHR, Vy Vu and Alexandra (Ali) San Roman for their support in building this program. #ProjectDestined #AffordableHousing #FutureLeaders #CommercialRealEstate #EarlyCareerOpportunities #NextGenCRE