Joe Hagan, President and CEO of the National Equity Fund, has been elected to the Board of Directors of BRIDGE Housing, a leading nonprofit developer, owner and manager of affordable housing.

Washington, D.C. – January 5, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — Mr. Hagan has been in the housing credit business since the program began in 1986. He was the Director of Multifamily Housing at the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. In 1989 he founded the Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing (OCCH), where he was President for three years; OCCH went on to become the largest state equity fund in the country, investing more than $1.3 billion. He left OCCH to serve as president of the newly formed Banc One Community Development Corporation, making strategic housing credit investments throughout the bank’s market.

National Equity Fund has raised more than $11.4 billion in equity investments, resulting in 140,000 affordable residences across the country. In addition, Mr. Hagan served as President of the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition for two years and he remains on the board as President Emeritus.

“We are thrilled to welcome Joe to our board,” said Cynthia A. Parker, BRIDGE President and CEO. “His depth of knowledge and experience are rivaled only by his passion for community development. I believe he’ll bring great value to the organization as we continue to execute our strategic plan for growth.”

In November 2013, Mr. Hagan was inducted into the Affordable Housing Hall of Fame sponsored by Affordable Housing Finance magazine. In 2009, he was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Affordable Housing Investors Council, and in 2004 was honored by Fannie Mae with the Syndicator CEO of the Year Award.