“It is exciting to see the fruits of Ema’s labor in vivid color,” Clocktower President Jeff Jacobson noted. “The film earned numerous festival awards and represents Clocktower’s first investment in the African market. The quality of both the acting and production for a small-budget film is just amazing! We look forward to supporting more independent filmmakers by helping them bring their creative visions to life.”

Clocktower has recently agreed to finance and executive produce Edosio Deleen’s next feature, a full-length production entitled “When Nigeria Happens”. It’s a powerful, captivating exploration of the resilience and struggles of Nigeria’s youth, set within the colorful, chaotic cityscape of Lagos. Two passionate dancers from a free-spirited commune must confront harsh societal realities that challenge their love, dreams, and ideals, leading them to an emotional crossroads between the allure of defiance and the heavy cost of compromise. Filming is ongoing, with production set to complete this Summer, and distribution scheduled for Fall of this year.

Clocktower Tax Credits is excited to work with experienced filmmakers to help them bring their creative dreams to the silver screen. Our primary interest is in projects, which generate transferable tax credits. To discuss your film project with us, please call associate Haley Ricker at (978) 793-6694 or email her at HRicker@ClocktowerTC.com.

At Clocktower Tax Credits, we strive to support and empower filmmakers nationwide.  That’s why we were thrilled to partner with Women in Film and Video New England (WIFVNE) on a recent webinar focused on leveraging tax credits to help finance film and digital media productions.  As the Acquisitions Associate overseeing the film sector of Clocktower, Haley Ricker hosted the webinar, where she provided an overview of the tax incentives available to filmmakers in New England.  The event was moderated by Alecia Orsini, a sought-after line producer for Massachusetts productions.  She offered her perspective on utilizing tax credits from a production standpoint and guided conversation based on her experiences.

The event focused on the transferable tax credit programs in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.  Through Clocktower’s extensive work in all three states, Haley was able to advise filmmakers on their options when it comes to filming and provide guidance on how to navigate the process of applying for and receiving the credits.  By demystifying the process and bringing awareness to the job of tax credit brokers, she helped filmmakers see a new opportunity for partial financing of their productions.

WIFVNE works to advance the careers of women working in the film, television, and media industries.  It has been instrumental in providing support, resources, and opportunities to those both inside and outside of the organization.  Clocktower’s collaboration with WIFVNE highlights our shared commitment to support and offer direction to filmmakers throughout the production process.  Clocktower is a national broker of State and Federal tax credits, raising much-needed equity for the financing of important projects.  If you’re a filmmaker with questions about tax incentives, please contact Haley Ricker at (978) 793-6694 or HRicker@ClocktowerTC.com.

Clocktower has once again secured a state low-income housing tax credit investor for The Community Builders; this time for the Merrick at the Square project currently under construction in Worcester, MA.  This brand-new LEED certified 49-unit development will help fill the housing gap by offering additional affordable housing to the area, which is currently in very short supply.  The complex is designed to meet the Enterprise Green Communities standards which features many of the latest technologies such as on-site stormwater management, solar power generation, dedicated space for electric vehicles and bicycles, as well as providing tenants with access to various outdoor spaces.

While The Community Builders and Clocktower both have operations throughout the country, Massachusetts is home base to both firms, and we take great pride in our role in securing tax credit equity so these wonderful projects can continue to be built.  Watching the gentrification of these cities and towns in our backyard is very fulfilling; these projects require complex financial structures, and Clocktower is thrilled to be part of the solution.

Clocktower continues to support the many communities throughout the Commonwealth, by providing first-in-class tax credit placement.  If you are currently developing a low-income multi-family project and/or refurbishing old historic buildings that will generate tax credits, Clocktower should be atop your list of companies to call.  With decades of experience in the real estate sector, we look forward to putting our expertise to work for you and make those plans become reality.  Contact our Senior Associate, Dave Auster at (978) 793-6600, or by email at DAuster@ClocktowerTC.com.

Last month, Senior Associate David Curtis attended Evergreen Real Estate Group’s ribbon cutting celebrating the completion of the Bellwood Senior Apartments.  The project creates 76 one-bedroom and 4 two-bedroom units of affordable housing for seniors age 62 or older in Bellwood, a western suburb of Chicago.  The development also boasts amenities including an exercise room, community room, and outdoor balconies, fostering a vibrant and connected living environment for residents. Evergreen also ensured sustainability and energy efficiency for the project, incorporating features such as LED lighting and high-performance windows.

Bellwood Senior Apartments serves as an important catalyst for the Bellwood community, as it replaces a former Walgreens convenience store that had sat vacant for over five years and now creates a home for local seniors who would be subject to displacement from their hometown.  “Our seniors are the backbone of our community and I have made them a major priority of my administration,” said Bellwood Mayor Andre F. Harvey. “Providing them with a beautiful home in which to live their golden years is vital.  It is truly amazing how far we have come in slightly over three years with the opening of the magnificent Bellwood Senior Apartments.  The dream team we assembled to make this possible all deserve a major thank you for turning this idea into reality in the midst of a world-wide pandemic.”  Clocktower provided the Illinois Affordable Housing Tax Credit equity for the project, and we continue to be very proud to support Evergreen’s impactful vision to provide high quality affordable housing across Illinois.

Clocktower is ready to help all Illinois developers looking to create housing for senior tenants, and has the breadth of experience to navigate all complexities for state tax credits generated by socially-impactful projects for seniors across the state.  If there are any questions or similar projects seeking a tax credit equity source or a path for tax credit eligibility, please reach out to David Curtis at (978) 440-0742, or email him at DCurtis@ClocktowerTC.com. 

Clocktower Tax Credits, LLC, is a national broker of State and Federal Tax Credit incentives.  We service the Real Estate, Renewable Energy, and Film/Digital Media industries, as well as the more general area of Economic Development incentives.  These programs are designed to provide necessary financing to fill the money gap to complete necessary, important, and exciting projects nationwide.  The great news is that these programs are expanding, turning more of these projects into realities.

An analysis by Novogradac & Company LLP (January 2, 2024) identified four states that created new tax incentives for Affordable Housing in 2023, as well as two states that legislated new Historic Building Rehabilitation tax credits.  By year’s end, the study totaled 30 states that provided state-level tax credit subsidies for affordable housing, 38 states that offered Historic tax credits, and 13 states where New Market Tax Credits were offered.  Only eight states offered no tax credit incentives to developers of such projects.  Research shows that many more development projects are completed in states that offer such tax incentives than in those states lacking such programs.

In the domestic Film/Digital Media industry, there are now 38 states that offer financial incentives to film and produce movies, television, websites and other digital media within their borders.  While some programs have been trimmed, more states have created or increased incentive programs, with either transferable or refundable tax credits.  With the writers’ and actors’ strikes over and post-pandemic production activity surging, these financial incentives are the key to turning so many locations across the country into “Little Hollywoods”.

Finally, in the Renewable Energy industry, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 has created all the incentive necessary to spur hundreds of billions of dollars of new projects and products.  The amount of tax credit issued to a project has leaped from about 22% of project cost to 30%, 40%, and even up to 60% in certain cases.  And most importantly, the creation of a transferable tax credit, which no longer requires investors to enter into complex, multi-year partnerships in order to save on their taxes, will attract perhaps $100 billion in investment in 2024.  State incentives are not needed here!

So 2024 portends to be a very exciting year for developers, producers, and investors in tax credit projects, with so many state governments joining with the Federal Treasury to stimulate the private activity in Real Estate, Film, and Renewable Energy.  Clocktower Tax Credits helps put these projects together.  To schedule a meeting with any Clocktower associate, or a phone call or Zoom session, please call President Jeff Jacobson at (978) 823-0200, or email him at JJacobson@ClocktowerTC.com.