April 9, 2024–Oakland, CA
Rebecca joined Merritt in April 2023 and is about to celebrate her 1-year anniversary!
Joining our team as an Asset Manager, Rebecca has years of direct on-site property experience via property management and operations. In her time at JSCO, Rebecca was a Regional Manager for 6 years, overseeing affordable housing property operations. When she became a Senior Regional Manager, her scope of work grew even larger.
Before Merritt, she went into commercial property management, to have a holistic understanding of the work from different perspectives. Ultimately, she missed working in affordable housing, the challenges and the clear impact, and joined Merritt’s Asset Management team where she knew she could learn and grow while working at a mission-focused organization.
Rebecca had heard good things about Merritt and knew Izaac Singh, current Director of Asset Management, when their paths had cross at her time with JSCO, which made her more confident about applying. “The Asset Manager role itself was really appealing,” shared Rebecca. “I had worked with a lot of Asset Managers and wanted to make that transition.”
Rebecca shared her passion for affordable housing, which has grown since her time working directly with tenants and residents. “I’ve become really passionate about my work, even though I fell into the affordable housing field,” said Rebecca. Seeing residents’ experiences first-hand and what they have combatted, especially at Permanent Supportive Housing sites, made her want to stay in affordable housing. She finds the challenges and nuances of affordable housing interesting and values the direct results for individuals and families you can see when working in this industry.
Rebecca has a unique perspective since she knows what she’s asking of our partners, how much time is needed, and extra support that could be helpful. She appreciates the work she is doing now, giving her the opportunity to think in a big picture perspective, supported by her knowledge of the day-to-day operations at a site.
While talking about Merritt’s mission, vision, and values, Rebecca commented on how critical the vision and mission were. She feels connected to the Solutions-Oriented value since in her role she needs to be on her toes and a problem solver. “You don’t always know what the day is going to bring or what challenges are presented. You need to make swift decisions and have follow through on them,” shared Rebecca. She also shared how true the People-First value felt to her as people are at the center of our work. “We have incredible properties and the site teams running them do amazing work,” she said. “They are aligned with the goal of housing people from all walks of life, especially vulnerable populations.”
Rebecca has been a wonderful addition to Merritt and the Asset Management team! Rebecca said that she has already learned so much and how deeply she enjoys working with her Asset Management teammates. “I love the asset management team and feel so lucky to work alongside them.”
Thank you for your people-first perspective as you work to find the best solutions for your partners, Rebecca! We look forward to many more years with you working on the Asset Management team.
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 $1.4 billion in 26 separate funds, providing housing for over 29,700 people.