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Interview
It is very seldom that the topic of ‘ affordable housing ’ is read in the pages of this magazine . However , I recently came across a book that urged me to make that change . American Dream Come True : Why Affordable Housing is Good Policy , Good Business and Good for America was written by Tony Bertoldi , a Bostonian who is very proud of the work he does as Co-President at CREA LLC , and who raises compelling arguments in support of the need for affordable housing . Subsequently , he made an excellent candidate for this month ’ s Main Interview .
Access to a home is more than the provision of basic amenities . A home offers the opportunity to succeed , to establish ourselves as dignified individuals contributing to society , which is perhaps why this conversation is crucial . In our exchange , Tony outlines the current housing crisis taking root across the US . However , more optimistically , he shares solutions to the issue , and eloquently breaks down the stigmas associated with this topic .
Tony , to get started , I ’ d love to know more about you and the journey you ’ ve been on to build a well-established career in affordable housing . Absolutely , and I should add that some of this is in the book . There ’ s a chapter in there called ‘ The Land of Misfit Toys ’, which is a reference to the Christmas cartoon about Rudolph the Reindeer . A lot of us that end up in real estate don ’ t know that we ’ re going to end up in real estate . So , in college , I was an economics major , and macro- and micro-economics has always been the foundation for what I do . Additionally , I went to the University of Connecticut , which focused onoffers a concentration in real estate , and I thought that was really interesting . And so that led to my first job in New York City . Then , after graduation , I worked for what was , at the time , Arthur Andersen , one of the original ‘ big eight accounting firms ’, sadly it ’ s no longer around . But I was working in a real estate consulting practice and started to dabble in consultancy for the affordable housing sector . That led to my first job at a tax credit syndicator , which is the company I work at now . So , a combination of early consulting work and my time at a tax credit syndicate syndicator for the last 30 years is what brought me to this little niche industry . modernhb . com 9