Eligibility: WAHN members Format: online lectures via Zoom When: 3PM Eastern Time on Thursdays, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 10/26, 11/2 and 11/9 Length: 1 hour and 30 minutes each Homework: 5 self-graded assignments
Ep. 290 – Dive into the journey of Ashley Northcutt, the dynamic President of the National Women’s Affordable Housing Network (WAHN), an organization passionately advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.
WAHN, under Ashley’s stewardship, empowers women in the industry through education, active allyship, and fostering meaningful connections.
With a diverse network spanning government agencies, financial institutions, developers, and nonprofits, WAHN is truly reshaping the affordable housing landscape.
Join us as we explore Ashley’s inspiring pivot from a seasoned accounting professional to spearheading this pioneering network full-time.
Tune in for an enriching conversation about affordable housing, diversity, and the power of women in the industry.
Listen in to learn how to pivot from your career and still find success in following the path led by your strength and passion. You will also learn the value of choosing a career in affordable housing, working for a diverse company, and prioritizing community housing.
Key Takeaways:
The importance of supporting other women to help you sustain your level of success
The power of saying yes and getting involved with a lot of things in helping you get to the top
How to utilize your strengths and passion to pivot your career and still find success
The importance of building a career in an organization focused on diversity
In this episode, you will learn:
Ashley on why she decided to pivot to the National Women’s Affordable Housing Network [01:42]
She defines affordable housing plus the creative affordable housing solutions they’re focused on [04:58]
She explains how WAHN is open to all creative affordable housing solutions [06:23]
The role of women in affordable housing, plus how we can sustain our levels of success [07:40]
She describes some of the initiatives that WAHN is planning and the impact they’ll make [09:03]
How WAHN is committed to bridging the gap in the affordable housing industry [15:59]
How she was able to pivot from a secure corporate career and embrace a role at WAHN [18:41]
The three takeaway points Ashley would like to leave you with on housing and career [22:47]
The Women’s Affordable Network is thrilled to announce our first ACTIVE ALLY award winner, Kent Neumann, Founding Member of Tiber Hudson. Several WAHN Women nominated Kent for his contribution to ensuring equity for all in the workplace and upholding the values and ideals that James Cromartie embodied during his lifetime. Please join us in congratulating Kent!
The Women’s Affordable Housing Network (WAHN) is making big moves.
Committed to the empowerment and development of women who work in affordable housing, WAHN is in a major growth phase. The network hopes to add 18 more chapters this year, bringing the total to 27 across the country. Central to the group’s ambitious plans is national president Ashley Northcutt, a 15-year veteran of the affordable housing industry with extensive knowledge of real estate and nonprofit taxation, low-income housing tax credits, historic tax credits, and cost segregation studies. She recently left her role as a tax partner at Tidwell Group to focus full time on WAHN.
“It’s definitely a passion,” Northcutt says. “It’s passion, and it’s the people I’m able to meet. I feel grateful every day that I connect with women and our allies across the country.”
In January alone, she received more than 50 calendar invitations from people wanting to touch base or know more about WAHN. The organization’s explosive growth is one reason it needed Northcutt to come in on a full-time basis, but it’s not the only one.
The network leaders have launched several other initiatives that will take shape this year. Dedicated to diversity and inclusion, they recently started an Ally Committee to get men involved and created the James Cromartie Active Ally Award to honor male allies.
They’ve also launched a college campus initiative to introduce students to career opportunities in affordable housing. WAHN is also working on an internship program to help foster the next generation of leaders. Many people working in the field today didn’t know affordable housing was an industry until after college, notes Northcutt.
That’s not all. WAHN has its sights set on developing a podcast and hosting its own conference in May 2024.
Northcutt will play a key role in all these plans.
Baker Tilly’s podcast series specifically for professionals in the multifamily housing industry.
On this episode of BuzzHouse, hosts Don Bernards and Garrick Gibson are celebrating Women’s History Month with the Women’s Affordable Housing Network’s (WAHN) National President, Ashley Northcutt, and Baker Tilly Director Nuwandi Trahan, who also serves on the board of WAHN. WAHN is an organization committed to amending the gender barrier in affordable housing. Ashley and Nuwandi discuss the important work WAHN does, why such an organization is needed in the affordable housing space and what goals they’re aiming for in the future. They also touch on some of the benefits of being a WAHN member and share their individual journeys within the industry.
Special guest
Ashley Northcutt, President, and CEO | Women’s Affordable Housing Network
Ashley Northcutt is the President of National Women’s Affordable Housing Network (WAHN), a 501(c)(3) organization focused on diversity, equity and inclusion. WAHN provides support to and empowers women working in the industry with intentional connection, education and active allyship. Northcutt left her job as Tax Partner at an accounting firm that specialized in the Affordable Housing industry in December 2022 due to the growth of WAHN. She specialized in the areas of real estate taxation, not-for-profit organizations and affordable housing. Northcutt is deeply committed to serving historically underrepresented communities and advocates for fair and equitable housing practices and policies.
Nuwandi is a director with Baker Tilly who has been with the firm since 2018. She has more than 15 years of public accounting experience. She works primarily with real estate owners, operators, developers, public housing authorities, public-private partnerships, syndicators, and investors. Nuwandi has extensive experience in audit, assurance and consulting engagements focused on the real estate industry. She specializes in evaluating financial controls and financial statement audits of real estate owners, developers, and public housing authorities. She also serves on the board of WAHN.
