Michael Small, Principal at St. Louis Trust & Family Office, presented at the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development Region VII Field Policy and Management leadership meeting on August 21, 2019 in St. Louis. Michael spoke about the benefits and risks of Opportunity Zone investments, sharing many similar thoughts that he expressed in his article “Investing in Opportunity Zones? Not So Fast” published earlier this year.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 created over 8,700 Qualified Opportunity Zones (“Opportunity Zones”) across all 50 U.S. states, Washington DC and Puerto Rico. The purpose of these zones is to attract long-term investment into low-income, economically-distressed communities through capital gains tax incentives.
Given Michael’s background and experience in the private sector, he focused on how he and his colleagues at St. Louis Trust & Family Office advise their clients about investing in Opportunity Zones. Immediately following Michael’s presentation, Matt Bauer of the St. Louis Development Corporation, shared a different, public market viewpoint of Opportunity Zones. Matt’s presentation focused on St. Louis’ Opportunity Zone efforts which range from the initial selection process of the zones to the current initiatives designed to encourage development within the designated areas.
