- Represented a non-profit organization in the District of Columbia in a joint venture to redevelop a portion of the former St. Elizabeth’s Hospital campus using tax exempt bonds, low-income housing tax credits and local rent supplement program to finance a 252-unit affordable housing project located in seven buildings.
- Represented a non-profit organization in the District of Columbia, with a focus on providing services to homeless women, in a joint venture to develop a supportive housing project using 9% low-income housing tax credits.
- Conducted a compliance review of HOME-funded rental-housing program and developed form documents for a Maryland non-profit housing developer and supportive services provider.
- Represented a Maryland housing authority in a RAD/ Section 18 blend to convert all three of its public housing properties into mixed-income affordable housing projects including a 50-unit family housing complex, a five-story 50 units senior housing building and 68 unit LIHTC and PBV unit project.
- Represented a Maryland housing authority in self-developing a Section 18 disposition of a public housing property into a 76 unit senior affordable LIHTC project including creating a non-profit instrumentality, negotiating a FHA-insured loan, Maryland CDA issued tax exempt bond financing, state rental housing funding and a PILOT agreement.
Vonda Orders
Washington, DC Office
Vonda Orders focuses her practice on affordable housing finance and commercial real estate transactions. She has experience representing non-profit developers, government agencies, banks and investors in all aspects of affordable housing development and finance. She was the first General Counsel for the DC Department of Housing and Community Development. She has extensive experience advising government clients on regulatory issues concerning affordable housing development and operations.
Selected Recent Transactions
Major Prior Work Experience
- Chief Program Officer, DC Department of Housing and Community Development, 2015-2018
- General Counsel for DC Department of Housing and Community Development, 2009-2015
- Assistant Attorney General, DC Office of Attorney General, 2008-2009
- Associate, Gallagher, Evelius, and Jones, LLP, 2002-2008
Speaking Engagements
- Moderator, “Fair Housing and Asset Management,” American Bar Association Forum on Affordable Housing, Virtual Conference (May 21, 2021).
- Moderator, “Adventures in Repositioning: Working Through the Streamlined Voluntary Conversion Process,” NAHRO Summer Conference, Virtual (July 23, 2020).
- Moderator, “Is it Eligible? Finding Funding for Deferred Maintenance and Operating Subsidies,” NAHRO Summer Conference, Boston, Massachusetts (July 11, 2019).
- Moderator, “Community Economic Development and HUD Post-2017,” American Bar Association Forum on Affordable Housing, Washington, DC (May 24-26, 2017).
- Panelist, “DC Long-Term Housing Affordability Roundtable,” Urban Institute, Washington, DC (September 7, 2016).
- Panelist, “Updating the Affordable Housing Toolkit: MPDUs and Beyond,” Affordable Housing Conference for Montgomery County, Bethesda, MD (May 4, 2015).
- Presenter, “Inclusionary Zoning: The Past, Present and Future of the District’s Affordable Housing Program,” Real Estate, Housing and Land Use Section of the District of Columbia Bar, Washington, DC (April 2, 2014).
Awards, Associations and Professional Activities
- Member, The Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers
- Member, Leadership for Educational Equity
- Board Member, District of Columbia Board for the Condemnation of Insanitary Buildings, September 2015-March 2018
- Appointed Board Member, Howard County Racial Equity Task Force: Housing Sub-group, November 2020 – July 2021
- Member, Howard County Housing Affordability Coalition, August 2020 – present
- Exemplary Service Award, DC Office of Attorney General, 2013
Education
University of Maryland School of Law, J.D., with Honor
University of Maryland, College Park, B.A. in Journalism
Bar Admission
District of Columbia Bar
Maryland Bar