Deputy Director, Offsite & Modular Housing

Job Type: Full-Time, Remote
Division: Housing
Reports to: Director of Housing 
Compensation: $105-$120,000; commensurate with experience

Description

The Deputy Director, Offsite & Modular Housing will lead the Center for Public Enterprise’s work to address the housing shortage by advancing modular and offsite construction. This involves launching and managing a multi-year working group of Northeast state agencies, a joint project with the Urban Land Institute’s Terwilliger Center for Housing. The working group will meet virtually for two years (with annual in-person convenings) to focus on overcoming core barriers to offsite construction, including fragmented building codes, insufficient aggregate demand, financing and risk-management challenges, and market acceptance gaps. 

The role combines housing finance, public sector implementation, technical assistance, and market-building, with a focus on designing new lending and investment approaches. We seek a strong communicator with a background in lending, underwriting, or structured housing finance to work with various partners (state agencies, lenders, developers, manufacturers) to find practical financing solutions. This fully-remote position is grant-funded for two years (with possible renewal); preference will be given to candidates in the Northeast region.

Responsibilities

Project & program leadership 

• Lead CPE’s engagement in the Northeast Regional offsite/modular consortium, in partnership with the Urban Land Institute’s Terwilliger Center on Housing. 
• Help design and implement policy, programmatic, and financing strategies that expand the use of offsite construction to produce lower-cost housing.
• Manage multiple workstreams simultaneously, ensuring strong coordination across timelines, deliverables, and external partners.
• Develop and maintain project plans, workplans, and tracking tools to support internal coordination and external reporting.
• Monitor progress against contractual obligations, identify risks or bottlenecks, and support problem-solving with contractors  and partners. 

Finance, policy, and market development

• Help design and assess potential financing and credit structures to support offsite housing, including approaches related to factory deposits, bulk purchasing, construction lending, revolving facilities, credit enhancement, pipeline support, and other risk-management tools.
• Lead or support the development of policy briefs, implementation memos, and strategy documents related to offsite and modular housing.
• Contribute to the design of state and regional policy initiatives related to offsite construction, including bulk purchasing, pre-approved designs, financing tools, risk-management strategies, and code or inspection reform.
• Lead work to directly engage state HFAs, private lenders, CDFIs, building departments, manufacturers, and developers to identify the barriers to financing modular and offsite construction and develop practical solutions.
• Support the development of underwriting frameworks, lending guidance, and implementation tools that public agencies and financial partners can use to evaluate and finance offsite housing initiatives.
• Conduct and oversee research and analysis related to offsite construction, housing finance, public development models, and program design in the Northeast and beyond.
• Help translate technical concepts into clear materials for public-sector partners, funders, and other external audiences.
• Support the development of educational content and training for public officials, developers, lenders, and other practitioners on how to use offsite construction effectively.

Technical assistance & stakeholder engagement

• Provide direct technical assistance to housing finance agencies, local governments, and other public-sector partners, or manage consultants who can provide specialized assistance. 
• Support convenings, workstreams, and peer learning networks focused on offsite and modular housing.
• Coordinate stakeholder engagement processes, including meetings with public agencies, developers, manufacturers, lenders, and other partners.
• Prepare presentations, briefings, and written communications for partners, funders, and external audiences.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of relevant experience in affordable housing finance, real estate lending, community development finance, public sector consulting, housing policy, real estate development, or a related field.
• Demonstrated familiarity with offsite construction, modular housing, manufactured housing, or related policy and market issues, or strong interest in developing deep expertise in this area.
• Strong understanding of housing development and finance concepts, including construction and permanent lending, underwriting, subsidy layering, and state or local housing programs in the Northeast region.
• Experience interfacing with lenders or helping design financing solutions, underwriting approaches, or risk-management tools for housing or community development projects strongly preferred.
• Experience working with housing finance agencies, state or local housing departments, and housing developers and lenders.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex, multi-stakeholder projects and move work from concept to execution.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience producing clear, professional deliverables for executive and public-sector audiences.
• Commitment to CPE’s mission of advancing innovation in the public sector and increased housing production.

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary range: $105–120,000, commensurate with experience.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance.
• 401(k) with organizational match.
• Generous paid time off and professional development opportunities.

To apply for this role, click here.