The Affordable Housing Revolution: Building Cheaper, Faster, and Smarter with Private Capital

This episode of the "Building What Matters" podcast features host Andrew Robles (@fbcorpceo), CEO of Foundational Builders Corp, and guest Jason Riffe (@jasonriffe on Instagram), a leader in affordable housing finance with the SDS Impact Debt platform. The two discuss affordable housing strategies, finance, and construction.

• Financial Innovation: Jason Riffe’s background in sustainable development and social ethics led him to finance. He highlights the need for a shift from traditional, slow public funding (which often results in high costs, $650,000 per unit in LA) to private capital.

• The Private Capital Solution: Jason’s firm accesses private capital through capital markets (like bonds) to provide debt financing for affordable housing. This streamlined approach can reduce the development timeline to under four years and lower the cost to about $300,000 per unit.

• Construction & Quality: Andrew Robles (FB Corp) emphasizes that successful affordable housing requires high-quality, skilled, and union-level subcontractors. Low-bid contractors lead to delays and poor quality, but a quality GC ensures compliance and maintains the dignity of the housing.

• Expansion & Growth: Andrew confirms that FB Corp is licensed and operating in California, Florida, and Arizona. He announced that FB Corp is pivoting to become a developer itself, with the goal of raising a half a billion-dollar fund to efficiently execute projects.

• Advice: Jason advises career starters to focus on specialized trades like electrician and HVAC. He recommends that investors consult their advisor about the municipal bond space, which he considers a safe asset class.

• Andrew Robles (@fbcorpceo) - CEO of Foundational Builders Corp.

• Jason Riffe (@jasonriffe) - Managing Director of SDS Impact Debt platform.