Some members of the Real Estate and Construction Lending Practice Groups have developed a niche expertise in not-for-profit, IDA & other tax advantaged lending. This area is highly specialized and regularly changing. One cannot emphasize enough the level of organization, breadth of knowledge, discipline, hard work and perseverance in closing one of these transactions, whether for our lending clients, real estate developers, not for profit organizations, and state-chartered and federal housing authorities.
The documentation is complex and often heavily negotiated. It is not unusual to have multiple private and public funding sources, and all attorneys must be fully familiar with the requirements of all such funders. Our clients value our ability to break down the transaction for them and work with all parties on a timely basis in order to achieve successful closings.
We represent financial institutions in their capacity as letter of credit issuing banks in connection with real estate secured industrial revenue bond transactions (the more complicated structure, but one if a borrower qualifies, borrower realizes significant benefits over the long term) as well as so-called straight lease transactions.
We also represent several national credit unions devoted to financing religious institutions. As a result, we are fully cognizant of the special issues in New York State concerning such lending (i.e, when is a court order or attorney general approval necessary), and regularly advise our lenders on the New York not for profit law, and statutory authority for IDA financing.