Spencer Fane Real Estate attorneys work with real estate owners, developers, and investors in the layering of development incentives in order to maximize financial benefits for our clients. Our team is experienced in all types of tax incentives, special districts, and tax abatement programs. We provide trusted counsel for all categories of real estate projects, including residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional.
Our attorneys have extensive experience in assessing an existing site, defining the related financing needs, and identifying ways to make a real estate project economically feasible. We also assist clients in the site selection process, looking at options and providing input on what types of incentives might be available and how they can contribute to making a real estate project cost-effective.
As the development process continues to increase in complexity, the need for informed legal counsel throughout the process grows. Spencer Fane is experienced in assisting clients in identifying and procuring public funding sources for such complex projects.
Our attorneys focus on assembling teams that help clients expeditiously close complex transactions involving tax credits (Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, and Opportunity Zones) and special districts, (protection, water and sanitation, metropolitan, and business improvement districts), transportation development districts (TDD), community improvement districts (CID), tax increment financing (TIF), sales and property tax abatements, and other state/local programs.
Spencer Fane attorneys understand that each incentive and abatement opportunity comes with its own eligibility requirements, and we help clients meet those requirements when necessary. In addition, we examine the costs and potential drawbacks of each incentive program, including how certain programs can have offsetting costs that negate some of the financial benefit.
We also have the capacity to serve in a general counsel role to assist with ongoing compliance and regulatory needs in an effort to maintain the maximum financial benefit and to assist in any litigation related to an abatement or incentive program.
Representative Experience
- Represented a developer in rehabilitating a historic governmental building into a hotel using historic tax credits, tax increment financing, community improvement district, and transportation development district. The project was valued at $55 million.
- Assisted a client in closing a TIF on a regional multi-modal industrial rail park with $200 million worth of investment.
- Assisting a Business Improvement District in the financing and development of a $35 million visitors center, and an additional $30 million in infrastructure to serve associated office, hotel and retail development.
- For the past 20 years, assisted a Metropolitan District that provides recreational facilities and services, including two regional sports complexes providing programs in swimming, gymnastics, hockey, basketball and adult, teen child and toddler activities. This representation includes board representation, and employment, OSHA, ADA, environmental, finance, real estate, and litigation matters.
- Assisting developers through the creation of a variety of taxing districts that finance the development of more than 24,000 acres, including the construction of major power, water, sewer, street, and transportation improvements that will ultimately serve not only the land being developed but the entire population of a county and those traveling through it.