1. Establish Relationships
Take the time to create relationships with legislators and their staffs before you need their help on an affordable housing issue. This includes making visits to Capitol Hill and legislators’ districts, says Michelle Norris, executive vice president of external affairs and strategic initiatives at Columbus, Ohio–based National Church Residences. “If you wait until their support is urgent, it might be too late,” she adds. “There’s no question this takes time from your day job, but it makes a great future possible.”
2. Start Locally
Visit with your representatives in their local offices. Begin with the staff, who are the catalysts for issues reaching their bosses, says David Gasson, vice president at Boston Capital and executive director of the Housing Advisory Group. The key is to demonstrate to them the benefits, success stories, and needs of the community, laying the groundwork for an eventual meeting with the elected official. Norris adds it’s important to find staff who have become subject matter experts. “Congress and state legislators can’t know everything about all the incredibly complicated legislation,” she says. “Like any good manager, they delegate detail work to key staff.”
3. Extend an Invitation
Invite legislators and their staffs to your properties. Experience has shown that affordable housing developments sell themselves once they’re up and running. At the federal level, according to Gasson, the affordable housing industry has yet to have a member of Congress not support the low-income housing tax credit after visiting a property, meeting the residents, and speaking with local elected officials. “This is where you give them ownership of your success, which hopefully translates into their support,” he says.
4. Keep It Simple
“I’ve been to Hill visits with industry people who dive deep into weeds with a staff person who isn’t a subject matter expert,” says Norris. “You can clearly see the staffer had no idea what the person was talking about.” If you’re meeting a staff member for the first time, Norris recommends asking if the person is familiar with the topic. If he or she isn’t, this becomes an educational opportunity as well as “an ask.” Be prepared to explain the subject matter in a simple way and tie the ask to a real impact in their district.
5. Give Thanks
Send individual thank-you notes to your elected representatives, letting them know that a forthcoming or existing community you’ve developed wouldn’t have been possible if not for their support, even if they didn’t offer any, says Gasson. At a minimum, this will pique the representatives’ and their staffs’ interest and, hopefully, result in a substantive follow-up, which will lead to the next step.