Antonio Marquez | Managing Partner, Comunidad Partners

Antonio Marquez, Principal and Managing Partner at Comunidad Partners, talks about his firm’s focus on workforce housing and their community oriented, impact investment business model.

This is the second of a two part series this month on Leading Voices focusing on the housing crisis in our country. In the prior episode, we spoke with Ismael Guerrero, CEO of the nation's largest nonprofit housing provider, Mercy Housing, about low income, subsidized housing.

In today's episode, we talk to Antonio Marquez about the housing affordability challenges for moderate income renters, often termed "the missing middle" or "workforce renters" that he serves at Comunidad. We talk generally about this part of the rental market as well as Comunidad's approach.

Driven by his growing up in an immigrant (and entrepreneurial) family, Antonio founded his vertically integrated multifamily real estate investment firm with a desire to foster opportunity through community in the workforce housing space. Antonio contrasts his business model with the more prevalent value-add business model as one that has similar risk adjusted economic returns, but prioritizes community-focused upgrades, social services and property management that supports renewals versus turnover. Since the workforce housing stock and demographic actually makes up a majority of the investable multifamily universe, Antonio makes the case that this approach could positively change the public dialogue and perception of the apartment industry.

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Antonio Marquez | Managing Partner, Comunidad Partners

Meet the Author

Matt Slepin

Managing Director, Global Co-Head of Real Estate, Terra/ZRG Partners