What We Do

Through supporting over 100 transactions and three customized lending products, Urban Advisors has facilitated creation of 9,500 jobs, rehabilitation of 500 mixed-income housing units and blighted commercial real estate, and deployment of $650 million to underserved entrepreneurs. We focus on tackling and reversing quality of life disparities in markets that experience lack of upward mobility.

Client Engagements

 
 
 
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Disaster Recovery

Urban Advisors designed a Program-Related Investment (PRI) strategy for the Foundation for Louisiana to address capital access barriers and rebuild local economies after disaster. Our work on the O.C. Haley corridor has helped hundreds of families and entrepreneurs secure stable housing and access to working capital. The strategy now serves as a model for mission-driven investment across southern Louisiana.

 

Detroit Development of Color

Urban Advisors structured a $7 million impact loan fund to support entrepreneurs in  overlooked markets that are ready for investment and expansion   of color and women-owned businesses in Detroit. Through a partnership with Detroit Development Fund, JPMorgan Chase, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the fund became a platform for job creation, neighborhood revitalization, and economic inclusion. Nearly half of loan recipients were under funded business owners.


 

Refresh Project

Partnering with Broad Community Connections, Urban Advisors helped secure a $20 million real estate acquisition that transformed a vacant building into a 60,000 sq ft healthy food hub. Located in a high-unemployment area, the ReFresh Project now anchors new business activity, improves food access, and serves as a national model for public-private investment in underserved neighborhoods.

 

EasyPay Merchant Cash Advance

In partnership with Opportunity Fund, Urban Advisors developed a capital strategy for the EasyPay Merchant Cash Advance product—an affordable, flexible lending tool for small retail and food businesses in California. This approach allowed Hispanic business owners to access working capital outside of traditional banks—supporting job growth and economic self-reliance.


 

Other Client Engagements

  • School Food Financing Program
     Structured facility financing and social ROI metrics for the expansion of Revolution Foods’ Louisiana operations, supporting local employment and healthy school meals.

  • Renewable Energy Facility
    Designed an ownership and financing model for a newly constructed green energy facility, aligning infrastructure investment with long-term sustainability goals. Urban Advisors was engaged to structure and design and creative ownership financing model for a newly constructed renewable energy facility. 

  • Immigration Finance Program

    Conducted a national analysis for a private funder exploring innovative lending solutions within the immigration finance space.

  • Northern Economic Initiatives

    Structured a PRI to expand the lending capacity of Northern Economic Initiatives, a Michigan-based CDFI focused on rural small businesses.

  • Workforce Development & Incubator Program

    Developed a layered financing structure—including Historic Tax Credits, PRI, and Grants—to support a regional business incubator and job training center.