Green Building Portfolio
NEF Provides High-Quality, Affordable Green Housing
NEF has invested more than $720 million in some of the most innovative green developments in the country. From wind turbines and solar panels to rooftop rain gardens, recycled building materials and energy efficient heating/cooling and appliances, these projects illustrate the growing percentage of NEF investments that are committed to environmentally sound design and construction. What's more, these projects manage to take the lead on green while still providing high-quality affordable housing and critical supportive services that are in scarce supply in many communities.
Sakowitz Apartments
Sakowitz, a single-room occupancy community developed by New Hope Housing, is the first LEED for Homes certified affordable housing property in the state of Texas. The development features 166 fully furnished residences as well as a community kitchen and 
dining room, business center, library, laundry rooms, barbecue grill, patios, horseshoe pit, and courtyard with gazebo. Green features include sustainable landscaping with over 100 native tree plantings, water-conserving appliances and irrigation systems, Energy Star appliances, use of recycled materials, and roofing and paving designed to minimize the heat-island effect. Sakowitz was designed by Val Glitsch, the same architect who designed New Hope's award-winning Canal Street Apartments, also in Houston.
The residences at Sakowitz are restricted through the LIHTC program to individuals making no more than 60 percent of the area median income, with 58 rooms set aside for those making no more than 50 percent of the area median income and nine rooms for those making no more than 30 percent. Rents are approximately 28 to 40 percent below LIHTC maximum rents and 8 to 15 percent below market rents for the rea.
New Hope Housing is a Houston nonprofit that provides affordable housing communities where single adults on limited incomes can live with dignity and purpose. Sakowitz is the organization's second LIHTC project, following New Hope at Brays Crossing, which opened in 2010 and is another National Equity Fund, Inc. investment. New Hope Housing received a $200,000 Neighborhood Builder Award in 2008 from Bank of America for their excellence in developing residential communities.
Marion Green Apartments
Completed in December 2010, Marion Green Apartments is a 35-unit family apartment community in Marion, Indiana, that consists of three buildings designed using the latest green concepts and techniques. The buildings are equipped with tankless water heaters, 
geothermal heat pumps, bamboo flooring, and energy-efficient LED exterior lights. The grounds feature a community garden with a compost bin used for fertilizer.
The distinctive 10 two-bedroom and 25 three-bedroom apartments are equipped with washers and dryers, dishwashers, disposals, exterior storage space, patios or balconies, window blinds, wall-to-wall carpeting, and central air. There is a strong focus on community space, with a community room, managers’ offices, TV room, fitness room, and computer room all in the same clubhouse.
The units at Marion Green Apartments are available to households earning 60 percent of area median income or less, and four units are set aside for single-parent households.