Company Overview:
Affordable Equity Partners, Inc. (AEP) provides a full range of investment banking services for those seeking to finance, build, purchase, or rehabilitate multi-family housing. Since 1997, AEP has invested in nearly 27,000 homes across 500 communities. We serve the growing need for affordable housing across 16 states in 250 cities and have successfully syndicated over $4 billion in tax credits to build or preserve homes for working-class families and seniors.
Position Summary:
The Transactions Associate supports AEP's fund and partnership closings by coordinating due diligence collection, communicating with clients, and working alongside outside counsel to keep transactions moving on schedule. Working under the direction of the Director of Fund Closings and the Director of Partnership Closings, this role owns the day-to-day workflow of multi-party LIHTC closings — from due diligence intake through closing and post-closing file delivery.
The ideal candidate is an experienced real estate paralegal with LIHTC exposure who is comfortable reading transaction documents at a working level, identifying questions that need to go to the Directors or counsel, and managing communication across developers, investors, third-party consultants, and outside counsel.
Responsibilities:
- Collect, organize, and catalog due diligence for LIHTC fund and partnership closings, including organizational documents, title and survey, zoning, environmental reports, construction documents, insurance, and tax credit allocation materials.
- Maintain and update due diligence checklists for each transaction; track open items and flag outstanding deliverables to the Directors.
- Review incoming due diligence for completeness; surface items that look incomplete, inconsistent, or unusual for review by the Directors or counsel.
- Build and maintain transaction files, data rooms, and closing binders; coordinate post-closing document delivery and storage.
- Serve as a regular day-to-day contact with general partners, developers, management agents, contractors, third-party consultants, and outside counsel on assigned transactions.
- Schedule and support status calls, circulate closing checklists, follow up on open items, and clearly communicate next steps and deadlines to all parties.
- Coordinate with tax counsel, real estate counsel, lender counsel, and investor counsel to keep document drafting, comment turns, and signature collection on schedule.
- Engage and coordinate with third-party professionals (title companies, environmental consultants, appraisers, surveyors, etc.) as needed to support closings.
- Build and maintain good working relationships with repeat sponsors, developers, and counsel; represent AEP professionally in external communications.
- Read and develop a working-level understanding of LIHTC partnership agreements, fund operating agreements, purchase agreements, loan documents, guaranties, and ancillary closing documents.
- Compare deal documents against term sheets, letters of intent, and prior approvals at a high level; flag apparent discrepancies, unusual provisions, or deviations from AEP’s standard structure to the Directors and counsel for detailed review.
- Track changes across document drafts and maintain version control across counsel turns.
- Escalate substantive legal and structural questions to the Directors and outside counsel rather than resolving them independently.
- Help drive transactions to closing on schedule by managing checklists, follow-ups, and document logistics under the direction of the Directors.
- Form and maintain legal entities through secretary of state offices and coordinate ongoing entity-level filings as needed.
- Assemble closing checklists, signature packets, and closing certificates in coordination with counsel.
- Support special projects and other related duties as assigned.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
- Working knowledge of LIHTC program basics (Section 42), Qualified Allocation Plans, and the general structure of lower-tier and upper-tier syndicated investments.
- Strong working knowledge of multifamily real estate transactions, including title, survey, zoning, environmental, organizational, and loan documentation.
- Ability to read transaction documents at a working level, follow deal terms across drafts, and identify items that should be escalated.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to engage credibly and professionally with clients, counsel, and senior leadership.
- Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple concurrent closings against firm deadlines in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment.
- Keen attention to detail and ability to spot missing items, inconsistencies, and follow-ups in legal and financial documentation.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and comfort working in data rooms and document management platforms.
- High level of personal integrity, discretion with confidential information, and a tenacious, ownership-driven mindset.
Education/Experience:
- Paralegal certificate, Associate's or Bachelor's degree, or equivalent experience required.
- Minimum of 3 years of experience as a real estate paralegal or in a comparable transactions support role, with substantial responsibility for due diligence and document organization.
- Direct LIHTC and/or affordable housing transaction experience strongly preferred; experience supporting both fund-level and partnership-level closings is a plus.
- Prior experience working with developers, investors, and outside counsel on multi-party real estate closings.
Skills Required
- Paralegal certificate, associate's degree, bachelor's degree, or equivalent experience
- At least 3 years of experience as a real estate paralegal or in a comparable transactions support role
- Substantial responsibility for due diligence and document organization
- Working knowledge of LIHTC program basics, Section 42, Qualified Allocation Plans, and syndicated investment structures
- Working knowledge of multifamily real estate transactions, including title, survey, zoning, environmental, organizational, and loan documentation
- Ability to read transaction documents, follow deal terms across drafts, and identify issues for escalation
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple concurrent closings
- Attention to detail when identifying missing items, inconsistencies, and follow-ups
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office
- Experience with data rooms and document management platforms
- Direct LIHTC and/or affordable housing transaction experience
- Experience supporting both fund-level and partnership-level closings
- Experience working with developers, investors, and outside counsel on multi-party real estate closings
What We Do
We develop, build, manage and invest in quality housing where our families would be proud to live. Our vision is to develop long-term relationships with clients and investors in the financial services and real estate markets to maximize profitable opportunities for all involved. We serve our clients and communities with integrity to maintain their trust and respect. Since our beginning in 1984, our expertise has grown from affordable multi-family and senior housing communities to include skilled nursing care and memory care centers, market-rate apartment and loft communities, historic renovations and market-rate independent senior living communities. Today, JES Holdings is directly responsible for over 20,937 affordable homes in communities across 13 states.
