“I had never heard of a business model like this”: The ambitious affordable housing solution for working-class Americans
McCourt School of Public Policy alum Tim Szarnicki’s (MPM’21) innovative answer to reducing housing costs for middle-income earners in San Francisco is ready to be exported to other cities with similar challenges.
Tim Szarnicki (MPM’21)
With deep roots in San Francisco, Tim Szarnicki is leading an innovative, affordable housing business model aimed at a group often sold short: middle-income earners.
As executive director of The Affordability Project, Szarnicki has helped raise $8.5 million in private funds since 2022 to fill the gap in affordable housing for teachers, nurses, first responders, social workers, small business owners and others in the $80,000 to $120,000 income range. In 2024, The Affordability Project received a $3 million grant from Crankstart, a family foundation based in San Francisco, CA, to support its work.
Construction of the project’s first housing development — 100 units in Bayview Hunters Point, 70% offered to buyers and renters at below-market rates — will begin in the second quarter of 2025.
Architectural rendering of The Affordability Project’s planned housing development, 5250 Third Street, in San Francisco, CA, courtesy of Leavitt Architecture Inc.
Founded by Szarnicki’s longtime friend, Joey Toboni, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit relies on investments from high-net-worth individuals, housing funds and regional land partnerships. With no public funds and no investors looking to make profits, it has the equity and flexibility to create housing faster and cheaper than the city of San Francisco can.
“I had never heard of a business model like this, and it immediately made sense to me. Joey started looking at data and found that the city had zero incentive to build affordable homes for the working class,” said Szarnicki.
The building will be run as a profitable business, and we will pull equity out of it to invest in the next project. That is the beauty of our model.”
Tim Szarnicki (MPM’21)
“In fact, the Bay Area has produced only 6% of the middle-income housing inventory that is required to support its population. Our goal is to help bring back vital, talented people who have been leaving for other areas,” he said.
The Bayview Hunters Point project got through the San Francisco Planning Commission in just over eight months, “which is lightning speed,” according to Szarnicki.
Creating a strong network of donor support
When he first proposed the concept to “anyone who would listen,” Szarnicki would hear responses like, ‘Tim, that sounds really good. Good luck!’ which he said was “one of the nicer nos.”
But donors eventually bought in. Members of The Affordability Project’s board of directors, who each contribute $200,000, plus their time and talent, are from the real estate community. Other donors are citizens who believe in — and want to strengthen — their local communities.
“My dad came from nothing and worked his way to become a pediatric heart surgeon,” said Szarnicki. “As a kid, he used to take me on his rounds to visit his patients. I learned at an early age what giving back was all about.”
Szarnicki said his Jesuit education — at the McCourt School and as an undergraduate at Gonzaga University — reinforced his worldview of service to others. He wants to think bigger, with an eye on exporting The Affordability Project to cities like Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, New York and Seattle.
For now, Szarnicki is determined to offer a lifeline to teachers, nurses, police officers, first responders and others to plant their roots in San Francisco. “These are the people who respond to emergencies,” he said. “They are not the emergency.”
“When people buy into a place, they get involved in its success,” said Szarnicki. “That is when culture happens.”