Rogers Lewis is South Carolina’s leading historic tax credit law firm and has an experienced team that can guide you and your team through each stage of the tax credit development and approval process. From locating and entitling a qualified property to financing your historic project with tax credit equity, we can help you deliver a successful and profitable tax credit rehabilitation project.
Rogers Lewis has helped deliver hundreds of successful tax credit development projects. Here are just a few of our success stories.
By harnessing state and federal historic credits, coupled with the state mill credit and Bailey Bill tax abatement, the rehabilitation of the Woodside Cotton Mill into the Lofts at Woodside wove together a rehabilitation plan that reinvigorated not just the mill itself, but the ancillary structures on the site to create a vibrant community and successful project. The 309 apartments retain the industrial character of the historic textile, including interior wooden columns, exposed brick walls, and the mill’s eighteen-foot ceilings, keeping the massing of the space intact. Thoughtful consideration was given to where original painted walls, ceilings, and columns would remain while carefully removing paint in private areas to provide a raw aesthetic. Central corridors running the length of the building to access the apartments and allow the mill interior’s original height to be displayed. Concrete floors were added to create acoustical and fire separation between each level of the building and maintained the industrial character of the mill. New sheet rock walls separated each apartment while leaving the exterior envelope walls brick. Exposed ductwork adds to the industrial feel of the building.
Hotel Trundle and Boudreaux artfully combined three separate buildings from three eras into two distinctive spaces. Occupying both levels of the Western Auto and Rose-Talbert Paints as well as the first floor of the Powell Furniture Building, Hotel Trundle capitalized on the unique character of each building to inform its design, while creating a cohesive vision for the hotel. The Powell Furniture Building retained the pressed tin ceilings, removed the non-historic exterior paint, restored the original storefront design, and creatively incorporated hotel rooms with lower ceiling heights to maintain the full height of the historic mercantile space. At Western Auto, the original baked enamel exterior sign was wrapped in vinyl to retain a prominent feature while advertising the building’s new use. Original windows and exposed metal decking on the second floor remained while the first floor retained the highly finished appearance of a 1940s commercial building. The iconic Modern tripartite window on the second floor of Rose-Talbert Paints was carefully restored while a new second floor addition, which was not visible from the street, added additional rooms. The asymmetrical storefront, complete with pigmented structural glass, was restored on the building’s façade. Boudreaux’s second floor office in the Powell Furniture Building retained the pressed tin ceilings, hardwood floors, and signature row of columns down the center of the building.
The rehabilitation of this former five and dime store into a brewery and short term rental units retained the character-defining features of this mid-century commercial building while breathing new life into Myrtle Beach’s downtown. The project restored the original storefront design, retained the red baked enamel signboard as well as the original twelve-over-twelve second floor windows to maintain the commercial character while transforming the interior into a state-of-the-art brewery. The open floor plan helped maintain the historic mercantile space while the second floor storage space allowed more flexibility for subdividing into apartments. The exposed brick walls and metal decking ceilings were maintained as they were historically present while new floors and sheet rock partition walls were constructed for the building’s new use. The project has helped revitalize Myrtle Beach’s historic downtown commercial center while preserving a prominent historic building.
Rogers Lewis is a law practice and consulting firm which provides advice and legal representation to help clients understand and access the numerous tax credits and incentives available to owners and developers of qualifying properties. We help real estate owners and developers qualify their properties for tax credits and other real estate development incentives, and then we help our clients use those incentives to provide private equity funding for their projects. The tax credit application process is complex and time consuming, and Rogers Lewis has the expertise, knowledge and relationships to guide clients through each stage of their development to the successful completion of their projects. Rogers Lewis has been awarded numerous state, local and national awards for the projects they have been involved with and are recognized in the real estate development community as problem-solvers who are adept at delivering needed equity for their client’s projects.
Rogers Lewis assists clients with all aspects of historic preservation development, from preparing National Register of Historic Places nominations, to collaborating with architects and developers to ensure appropriate rehabilitation plans to meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. The firm advises clients on local, state, and federal tax incentives to provide the maximum benefit for each project.
Real Estate investment tax credits are valuable incentives that can be used to add tremendous value to properties that qualify for them, but many developers need the value of these incentives converted into cash during construction and development in order to help finance their projects and make such projects feasible. Rogers Lewis understands this, and has helped hundreds of clients convert their future tax credits into a source of project funding. Our knowledge of the industry, the market for such credits, and the players in those markets is an invaluable resource that we provide to our clients.
“Chris Rogers and the team at Rogers Lewis have represented me since 2005 on my historic tax credit projects. Their exhaustive knowledge of how to qualify for and monetize tax credits, and their practical approach, has added tremendous value to our properties across the Southeast, including South Carolina, Georgia, Arkansas, and Alabama. In addition to the tax credit legal work, they handle our real estate and loan closings, property tax incentives, monetizing the credits, Opportunity Zone investments, other tax implications, exit strategies, and other legal issues that have popped up along the way, making them a one-stop resource for tax credit projects.”
“My father and I have had the privilege of collaborating with the team at Rogers Lewis Group for nearly two decades. During this time, we’ve witnessed their unwavering commitment to excellence. The attorneys at Rogers Lewis excel in handling intricate closings, real estate developments, and historic tax credit deals. Their solution-oriented mindset ensures successful outcomes even in the most challenging scenarios. This team boasts unparalleled expertise in historic incentives, real estate and financing matters. Whether it’s commercial transactions, property disputes, or title insurance claims, they consistently deliver exceptional results. Rogers Lewis attorneys are not only well-versed in various tax credits but also go above and beyond to provide comprehensive legal guidance. Their depth of knowledge is an asset to any client seeking top-tier representation.”
“The Rogers Lewis firm helped launch our venture into historical renovations 7 years ago. Our work with them includes the restoration of the Fannie McCant Elementary school into townhomes, the Beaufort jail into condominiums and 12 new cottages, and we are now working on a large school conversion into 53 apartments and 20 single family homes. From the initial stages of analysis to the actual monetizing of the tax credits, they have been our counselors thru each stage. We have been so pleased with their service that we have recommended them to other developers with whom we work. Their ability to balance the many technical aspects of historic renovations with the practical economic realities make them a valuable asset in any development. Their staff are highly competent and experienced and we consider our relationship to be more of a partnership than attorney-client.”
“I am the founding principal of Camden Management Partners, Inc, a development firm that specializes in historic redevelopment of large industrial mills through the southeast and northeast. We have specialized needs ranging from partnership formation, environmental remediation, historic tax credit compliance, local tax abatement, land purchase agreements, title work, investor structuring, and other related issues. Rogers Lewis has helped as an invaluable partner in all of these aspects on numerous projects for Camden. They bring valuable experience in each of these aspects that is critical to the success of each project. They are well respected within this industry and as a result attract quality investors and other professionals that match well with the various project needs.”