January 22, 2024–Oakland, CA
For over 25 years, Steven Herman has held senior level positions with private and non-profit companies that support affordable housing and community and economic development. He is currently Senior Vice President and Manager of the Community Development Finance Division at California Bank & Trust (CB&T), a division of Zions Bancorporation. Mr. Herman manages CB&T’s community reinvestment initiatives, including lending, investment and service programs that support low and moderate-income communities. He has originated and managed over $2.5 billion in lending and investments for community development projects throughout the Western U.S.
Mr. Herman has held other positions with CB&T. He established the bank’s Affordable Housing debt platform in the early 2000’s and is responsible for all Low Income Housing Tax Credit equity investments for Zions Bancorporation. He is the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Officer for CB&T and chairs the Zions Bancorporation CRA Investment Working Group. He has managed a variety of community reinvestment partnerships and programs with numerous nonprofit organizations, banking regulatory agencies and public and private universities in California. These partnerships have led to lending, as well as savings and investments targeting emerging markets primarily in California.
He is active in his community and has served on several youth sports, neighborhood and faith-based committees and boards. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the University of San Diego and a Master of Arts in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of California Los Angeles. He graduated from the Pacific Coast Banking School with honors. Mr. Herman resides in Los Angeles with his wife and four children.
“I have spent my career in the affordable housing finance and community reinvestment banking arena for nearly 30 years and always wanted a career that had a positive impact on communities and have been fortunate to build lasting partnerships with colleagues, clients and friends with the same goal,” shared Mr. Herman. “I am excited about the work that Merritt is doing to build the next generation of talented and diverse leaders in the affordable housing industry. As we all know, there is a huge demand for affordable housing in California and a tremendous need for well trained professionals to help meet that need. Merrit’s support and leadership of affordable housing training and mentorship programs is impressive and a role model for its competitors.”
“I am excited for Steven Herman to join Merritt’s Board of Directors,” said Ari Beliak, Merritt’s CEO. “Steven brings a deep knowledge of affordable housing and community and economic development within both private and non-profit organizations. He has almost 30 years of experience in the industry and currently manages community reinvestment initiatives, including lending, investment and service programs that support low and moderate-income communities. We are grateful to have his expertise and dedication to housing on our Board!”
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 11,000 affordable homes, through investing over $1.2 billion in 26 separate funds, providing housing for over 29,700 people.