August 12, 2024-Oakland, CA
Izaac Singh is our next staff spotlight! He has been with Merritt for 6 years and has enjoyed his time with the organization. Izaac is our current Director of Asset Management and came to Merritt as an Asset Manager after working on the developer side of housing.
Before asset management, Izaac worked in property management. He saw it as an opportunity to ensure people were treated fairly and were able to live with dignity and be proud of where they lived. He enjoyed how busy he was, meeting new people, managing different projects, operations, and working closely with others. He sees the value of having property management experience before he became an asset manager.
In his work at a housing authority, Izaac realized he wanted to work at an organization where he got to do more hands-on asset management work and not just the regulatory management he had been doing. When looking to change jobs he had heard good things about Merritt and was able to talk to partners and Merrit staff before he joined the team. He learned more about LIHTC syndication on the job and enjoyed this learning aspect in his new role.
He was excited to join a team of people with deep asset management experience, knowing he would learn a lot from his colleagues. Izaac joined at an interesting time for Merritt and has had the opportunity to see Merritt’s growth and evolution, including the mission, vision, value work he was a part of. “I think Merritt does a good job of balancing our mission with our actual work in how we approach projects, problems, and solutions,” said Izaac.
Izaac cares deeply about the development of the asset management team and how they operate. Izaac has grown the asset management team since his time as Director and shared that he’s, “really proud of the current team and the passion to make sure we’re all doing our best work.”
After 6 years with Merritt, he appreciates the work-life balance at the organization and the acknowledgement that people exist outside of their jobs. The atmosphere created in the organization puts people first, and he believes Merritt allows people to feel good about their work.
Through different transitions at Merritt Izaac has been able to step into multiple roles of support outside of asset management, allowing him to have a unique perspective of how Merritt operates. Izaac appreciates the follow-through Merritt has when discussing changes and growth and believes the people at the organization are the driving reason. “We have really smart people who are great at their jobs, and everyone brings in different talents that allow us different perspectives,” shared Izaac.
Asset Management uses the values to refer to in meetings and when working with external partners. Izaac feels exceptionally connected to kindness. “Kindness is something I value in and out of work. It’s an important foundation to build relationships and partnerships and centering people in the work we do,” said Izaac.
In 2023, Izaac helped launch the Asset Management Specialist+ (AMS+) Cohort in partnership with CHAM to support affordable housing asset managers. He was excited to not only help provide training and materials through CHAM but to create a space for asset managers to talk about their work, network, and have thought partners. This program helps asset managers be aware of how impactful they are and where they can do their work more strategically to best serve the residents. He’s excited to be leading a second cohort of AMS+ and create more opportunities for asset managers.
Thank you for your work and dedication, Izaac!
About Merritt Community Capital Corporation
Merritt Community Capital Corporation is a nonprofit dedicated to our mission to provide equity capital for affordable housing exclusively to California. We do this by partnering with mission-aligned affordable housing developers throughout the state to ensure the most critical communities are developed and maintained for low-income residents. Since 1989, Merritt has created and/or preserved 11,100 affordable homes, through investing over $1.5 billion in 26 separate funds, providing housing for over 29,700 people.