New York Life’s Impact Investment Initiative commits $50 million in long-term capital to Century Housing Corporation.

New York Life | January 18, 2022

A Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), Century serves as a vital capital provider in low-income communities across California and is dedicated to delivering responsible and affordable lending.

NEW YORK — New York Life, America’s largest¹ and most admired² mutual life insurer, today announced a commitment of $50 million in long-term capital to Century Housing Corporation (Century), a U.S. Treasury-certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Century serves as a vital capital provider in low-income communities across California and is dedicated to delivering responsible and affordable lending to mission-aligned customers. Century has invested more than $2.3 billion in the affordable housing sector since inception, supporting more than 50,000 affordable housing units over 26 years.

New York Life’s investment involves the purchase of 10-, 15-, and 20-year senior unsecured notes. The funds will be used to offer loans to developers for the acquisition and/or financing of affordable and workforce housing developments and for general corporate purposes.

Century’s primary focus is on improving access to affordable housing for low- and moderate-income communities in California by financing the acquisition, construction, and the development of affordable housing units. Century also serves as developer, owner, and operator of affordable housing through two controlled affiliates: Century Villages at Cabrillo Inc. and Century Affordable Development, Inc. Century maintains public investment grade ratings and is currently rated AA- by S&P and AA by Fitch.

“At Century, we see homes as the cornerstone of a thriving and just society,” said Alan Hoffman, chief financial officer at Century Housing Corporation. “We finance, build, and operate exceptional affordable housing so that the vulnerable people we serve may have a dignified home, a healthy and hopeful future, and attain economic independence. The long-term capital provided by New York Life will allow us to further our mission by continuing to build communities with proven social impact.”

This is the latest investment by New York Life’s $1 billion impact investment initiative announced in April 2021. The initiative is focused on addressing the racial wealth gap by investing in underserved and undercapitalized communities over the next three years with a focus on supporting small businesses, affordable housing, and community development.

“New York Life’s impact investment initiative will continue to partner with CDFIs like Century, diverse asset managers, and other mission-driven organizations to positively impact the affordable housing sector and beyond,” explained Martin King, managing director and head of impact investments at New York Life. “Our long-term impact investment strategy is to develop large-scale solutions and investment structures that aim to deliver broad and inclusive economic outcomes linked to job growth, health and wellness, and personal and household advancement.”

ABOUT NEW YORK LIFE

New York Life Insurance Company (www.newyorklife.com), a Fortune 100 company founded in 1845, is the largest¹ mutual life insurance company in the United States and one of the largest life insurers in the world. Headquartered in New York City, New York Life’s family of companies offers life insurance, retirement income, investments, and long-term care insurance. New York Life has the highest financial strength ratings currently awarded to any U.S. life insurer from all four of the major credit rating agencies³.

Footnotes

¹Based on revenue as reported by “Fortune 500 ranked within Industries, Insurance: Life, Health (Mutual),” Fortune magazine, 6/2/2021. For methodology, please see http://fortune.com/fortune500/.

²In the 2021 World's Most Admired Companies ranking from Fortune, New York Life Insurance Company claimed the top position in the Insurance: Life and Health category of the annual ranking of corporate reputation. Rankings are determined by a proprietary formula that weights nine criteria to create an overall score. Please visit https://fortune.com/franchise-list-page/methodology-worlds-most-admired- companies-2021/ for methodologies.

³Individual independent rating agency commentary as of 9/30/2021: A.M. Best (A++), Fitch (AAA), Moody’s Investors Service (Aaa), Standard & Poor’s (AA+).

Go back to our newsroom to read more stories.