Ali Day’s pathway into affordable housing started at LA Family Housing (LAFH), a homeless services agency in California’s San Fernando Valley, where she originally supported fundraising and administration work. In her initial role at LAFH, Ali learned about the many strategies to address homelessness, and was inspired by colleagues who were dedicated to creating tangible solutions for people experiencing it.
That experience sparked an interest in affordable housing development, leading her to join LAFH’s real estate development team as an Associate Project Manager before advancing to Project Manager. During her time there, Ali helped develop a range of Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) communities serving individuals experiencing homelessness, including new construction, rehabilitation, motel conversion, modular construction, and veteran housing projects.
As her career journey evolved, Ali saw firsthand that developing affordable housing is both challenging and incredibly meaningful work. Every project requires navigating complex funding structures, competitive financing, permitting processes, construction hurdles, and lease-up requirements—all while staying on budget and meeting critical timelines.
Through her development work, Ali became familiar with Merritt, which served as the LIHTC syndicator for several projects she worked on.
“I was consistently impressed by Merritt’s expertise, but more importantly, by the team’s genuine desire to be a true partner in overcoming obstacles. That mission-driven approach inspired me to apply when the opportunity arose.”
Ali also had the unique opportunity to participate in two of Merritt’s Commitment to Community (C2C) programs: the Housing Development Training Institute (HDTI) and Merritt Scholars. Gaining direct experience in Merritt’s workforce development initiatives and seeing its positive impact on her career development only strengthened her desire to join the team.
The expertise she gained working in affordable development helped prepare her for her role at Merritt, where she assists projects through financial closings, monitors them during construction, and eventually supports them through permanent conversion. Since joining Merritt, Ali has valued expanding her perspective beyond a single region and supporting affordable housing developments throughout California.
“Working for a developer, my view of the industry was primarily focused on projects in Los Angeles,” she explains. “At Merritt, I’ve had the opportunity to work with developers and partners across the state, which has been deeply rewarding.”
Ali is especially proud of Merritt’s willingness to support projects that may face unique challenges in securing financing.
“I love that Merritt takes on developments that might not otherwise have access to equity. Being part of that work and helping move those communities forward has been incredibly meaningful.”
As Merritt continues investing in affordable housing and people, team members like Ali help carry our mission forward every day. Through their expertise, unique skill sets, and commitment to community, we’re grateful for our team and their dedication to ensuring our neighbors find safe, secure, stable housing where they can thrive.
About Merritt Community Capital Corporation
Merritt Community Capital Corporation is a mission-oriented affordable housing funder that serves the state of California. For more than 35 years, Merritt has been a trusted partner, investing more than $1.7 billion and creating over 12,500 affordable homes across California. Beyond investing in properties, Merritt invests in people. Through its Commitment to California initiative (C2C), Merritt proudly spearheads programs across the state that attract, train, and retain current and future affordable housers.
Merritt is also the west coast member of the National Association of State and Local Equity Funds (NASLEF), which empowers locally engaged, mission-driven housing and community investment partners to build thriving communities. By partnering with mission-aligned organizations and developers in the affordable housing space, Merritt ensures the most critical communities are developed and maintained for low-income residents.