BOSTON – February 14, 2022 – MassHousing has closed on $34.8 million in affordable housing financing to Beacon Communities LLC to refinance, renovate and preserve housing affordability at the 192-unit Woodlands at Abington Station in Abington.

"Thanks to this refinancing transaction, the Woodlands at Abington Station will continue to be an important housing resource for nearly 200 Abington households, who live steps from the town's commuter rail station and close to many amenities," said MassHousing Executive Director Chrystal Kornegay. "MassHousing was pleased to partner with Beacon Communities to ensure that these quality apartment homes serve Abington residents long into the future."

Mary Corthell, Beacon Communities' Executive Vice President of Asset Management, noted, "We are proud to partner with MassHousing on this refinancing. The planned renovations and preservation of housing affordability at Woodlands at Abington Station will improve the quality of life for our residents and aligns with our mission of maintaining outstanding communities."

Woodlands at Abington Station was refinanced through MassHousing’s Multifamily Accelerated Processing (MAP)/Ginnie Mae Joint Venture Initiative with lender partner Rockport Mortgage Corporation. MassHousing offers the MAP/Ginnie Mae loan program to the owners of rental housing through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD provides expedited Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insurance approvals through the MAP program. MassHousing has surpassed $1.75 billion in cumulative MAP lending and the Agency has built the largest MAP lending program of any state housing finance agency in the nation.

The combination of FHA insurance and a Ginnie Mae guarantee enables borrowers to access taxable mortgage financing with lower interest rates, while preserving and extending affordability for hundreds of low-income individuals, senior citizens, and families. MassHousing is providing Beacon Communities a $34.8 million, 35-year permanent loan.

"We're honored to once again work with Beacon Communities as well as continue our strategic partnership with MassHousing," noted Dan Lyons, President of Rockport Mortgage. "The planned property improvements at Woodlands at Abington Station will preserve housing in a market area that has seen strong rental demand with a very limited new supply of rental units."

Developed in 2002 under Chapter 40B, 40 of the rental apartments at the property are affordable to households earning at or below 50 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and 152 apartments are rented at market rates. The AMI for Abington is $106,000 for a household of four.

Beacon Communities plans approximately $3.5 million in property improvements, including new siding, downspouts and gutters, roofing replacements, new windows, front doors and patio sliders, replacement of balcony decking, replacement of select water heaters, and ground and asphalt repairs.

Located at 9 Woodlands Way, the housing community consists of eight, three-story walkup buildings in a campus-style layout with a fitness center, community room, playgrounds, tennis courts and a seasonal swimming pool. There are 78 one-bedroom apartments and 114 two-bedroom apartments.

MassHousing has financed two rental housing communities in Abington involving 322 total units and $87.2 million in financing. The Agency has provided 321 home mortgage loans to Abington homebuyers or homeowners totaling $55.6 million in financing.

About MassHousing's MAP/Ginnie Mae Initiative 

MassHousing has partnered with three well-known and experienced MAP lenders CBRE, Capital One and Rockport Mortgage Corporation. The MAP lender prepares the submission of each transaction for HUD's approval. MassHousing then closes the new loan and issues a Ginnie Mae Mortgage Backed Security (MBS), which has consistently provided the multifamily mortgage industry its most competitive long term, taxable interest rates.

With each MAP/Ginnie Mae loan, MassHousing continues as the mortgagee of record and becomes a Ginnie Mae servicer. This ensures affordability, as each completed transaction will require the property owner to rent at least 20 percent of the units to those earning less than 80 percent of the area median income. Affordability at many properties could be at risk were MassHousing unable to offer this product, as owners could refinance with other lenders who do not require affordability restrictions.

About Beacon Communities LLC 

Beacon Communities LLC is a privately owned real estate firm that develops, acquires, invests in, and manages a wide range of multi-family housing. Their portfolio includes affordable housing, market rate housing and mixed income-housing. Their developments range from new construction, to historic adaptive reuse, to the renovation of existing housing. They take on challenging developments and make them succeed. Their driving passion is to create well-designed, healthy homes that improve the quality of life of their residents and enhance the neighborhoods in which they are located. For more information about Beacon Communities LLC please visit www.beaconcommunitiesllc.com.

About Rockport Mortgage Corporation

Rockport Mortgage Corporation is a privately-owned commercial mortgage banking firm founded in 1992 and located on the North Shore of Boston. Rockport specializes in providing FHA-insured loans to market-rate, affordable and senior housing communities and healthcare facilities through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and has been approved under HUD’s Multifamily Accelerated Processing (MAP) Program since the program inception in 2001. The Rockport team works collectively to navigate the complexities of FHA/HUD-insured finance programs, developing strategic solutions to meet the needs of our clients. For more information about Rockport Mortgage Corporation please visit www.rockportmortgage.com.   

About MassHousing

MassHousing (The Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency) is an independent, quasi-public agency created in 1966 and charged with providing financing for affordable housing in Massachusetts. The Agency raises capital by selling bonds and lends the proceeds to low- and moderate-income homebuyers and homeowners, and to developers who build or preserve affordable and/or mixed-income rental housing. MassHousing does not use taxpayer dollars to sustain its operations, although it administers some publicly funded programs on behalf of the Commonwealth. Since its inception, MassHousing has provided more than $27.5 billion for affordable housing. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

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