Director, Innovative Housing Finance

Chicago Housing Authority; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 125,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PTO package

Medical, dental, vision insurance

Disability insurance

Retirement plan

Job summary

Chicago Housing Authority seeks a Director of Housing Finance Innovation to lead the development of innovative financing strategies for affordable housing. This role focuses on alternative capital structures, emerging tools, and pilot projects to expand the CHA pipeline beyond LIHTC.

Two‑year grant‑funded position with philanthropic support; leadership across departments to advance system‑level financing, partnerships, and scaling efforts in Chicago.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Finance, Real Estate, Economics, Public Administration, Urban Planning or related field.
• Advanced degree strongly preferred.
• 5+ years in affordable housing finance, capital markets, public finance, or real estate development.

Responsibilities

• Identify, structure, pilot, and implement innovative affordable housing financing strategies.
• Evaluate and structure tools such as debt, credit enhancement, and public‑private partnerships.
• Advise project teams on financing constraints and opportunities across active developments.
• Support underwriting, financial modeling, and deal structuring with innovative approaches.
• Collaborate with Finance, Procurement, and Development leadership to align processes and build capacity.
• Embed at least one innovative financing approach into an active project without LIHTC resources.
• Produce case studies, reports, and implementation plans for scaling innovations in Chicago.

Skills

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Presentation skills

Cross‑functional collaboration

Multi‑project management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance, Real Estate, Economics, Public Administration, Urban Planning or related field

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Outlook

Financial modeling tools

Job description

Chicago Housing Authority seeks a Director of Housing Finance Innovation to lead the development of innovative financing strategies for affordable housing. This role focuses on alternative capital structures, emerging tools, and pilot projects to expand the CHA pipeline beyond LIHTC.

Two‑year grant‑funded position with philanthropic support; leadership across departments to advance system‑level financing, partnerships, and scaling efforts in Chicago.