OAKLAND, Calif. –September 23, 2026 – Merritt Community Capital Corporation’s newly launched Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) continues to build momentum, strengthening its lending capacity and presence to better support mission-driven affordable housing partners and projects.
A recent $10 million investment from Charles Schwab marks an important step in that growth, providing additional capital to directly support Merritt’s permanent loan program and finance affordable housing developments in communities that need them most.
Launched to expand Merritt’s longstanding support for affordable housing developments by adding flexible lending products, Merritt’s CDFI is designed to address financing gaps in the traditional capital stack and expedite the development of affordable housing.
The investment from Charles Schwab represents an important step in building Merritt’s permanent lending capacity and putting more capital to work in support of affordable housing.
“Affordable housing developers are navigating increasingly complex projects and financing environments, and access to flexible, reliable capital can make a meaningful difference in getting those projects across the finish line,” said Pavlin Buchukov, CDFI Director at Merritt. “This investment gives us greater capacity to respond to the needs we’re hearing directly from our partners and provide financing that helps impactful projects move forward. We’re grateful to Charles Schwab for investing alongside us in this work.”
As Merritt grows its lending work, it is also establishing a stronger physical presence in Southern California with the opening of a new Los Angeles office. The office will position the CDFI team closer to many of the developers, partners, and communities it serves.
Establishing a new office in Los Angeles reflects Merritt’s people-first, relationship-driven approach to affordable housing finance. By being closer to partners and projects, Merritt can deepen relationships, better understand financing needs, and continue developing solutions informed by the realities developers face.
For more than 35 years, Merritt has worked alongside mission-aligned partners to invest in affordable housing and strengthen communities. Through its CDFI, Merritt is building on that experience to provide additional financing tools and support projects at more stages of their development.
With new capital to deploy and a growing presence in Los Angeles, Merritt is continuing to expand its capacity while remaining focused on the same goal: investing in affordable housing and people to build stronger communities.
To stay updated with Merritt news and announcements, please visit the Merritt LinkedIn page.
About Merritt Community Capital Corporation
As a nonprofit investor and lender in affordable housing, Merritt Community Capital Corporation has invested more than $1.7 billion to create and preserve over 12,500 affordable homes, providing housing for more than 30,000 residents. For over 35 years, Merritt’s mission has remained at the core of its work.
Merritt partners with mission-aligned developers and funders to tackle some of the most challenging and impactful affordable housing projects. Through equity and lending capital, Merritt provides flexible financing solutions designed to meet today’s needs while preserving affordability for the future.
Through its Commitment to Community (C2C) initiative, Merritt extends its impact by investing in people—attracting, training, and retaining the next generation of affordable housing leaders.
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.
