What Do the Election Results Mean for the Opportunity Zones? Let's Hear from Industry Leaders

With the 2024 Election resulting in Donald Trump being elected the President, we believe there may be some potentially positive changes coming for the Opportunity Zone Program. 

Many industry leaders have already been discussing what the Trump presidency would mean for the Opportunity Zone Program, and with last week’s results, we may be inching closer to seeing some of these potential extensions and enhancements turn into reality. 

In fact, our Managing Partner, Jeff Feinstein, was interviewed by Novogradac earlier this year to discuss how a potential extension to the program could spur more investment into Opportunity Zones, and how we are already starting to see the return of stock sellers taking short and long term gains at market highs seeking diversification into real estate, as well as investors who have recently sold their businesses and using the powerful OZ tax shield to defer gains from liquidity events or real estate sellers now that rates are being cut.  

Here’s the latest on what the industry leaders are saying about the future of Opportunity Zones:

• Kiplinger published an article last month titled “Election Could Reshape Opportunity Zones and 1031 Exchanges” in which they noted that “Trump would likely maintain or expand the current qualified opportunity zones program, potentially extend the tax benefits beyond their current expiration dates” and resist calls for restrictions on the program.
• The positive news doesn't end there. Novogradac reported just last week that Qualified opportunity funds (QOFs) tracked by Novogradac reported “$1.24 billion in additional investment in the three-month period ending Sept. 30, reaching $39.54 billion since the origin of the opportunity zones (OZ) incentive. The third-quarter increase was more than the three previous quarters combined and was the largest quarter-over-quarter increase since the second quarter of 2023.” Novogradac predicts that OZ investments will likely surpass $40 billion by the end of the year.
• Not only that, but Novogradac also provided their preliminary take on the Election results just last week citing that if the Republicans retain control of the House, they will likely turn to using budget reconciliation to address the tax provisions.
• Jimmy Atkinson, Founder of Opportunityzones.com, also discussed how using OZ tax incentives to build more housing such as Build-to-Rent (BTR) communities can benefit the local communities and is an example of a good use of the OZ program. You can watch the video here (time stamp: 36:18) 

Speaking of, we recently partnered with Jimmy Atkinson to discuss the launch of our BTR OZ Fund, which you can watch here. 

This is just the start of many industry analyses to come. Stay tuned for our upcoming blog posts to stay up-to-date on what the future holds for OZs.

In the meantime, to learn more about our BTR OZ Fund or to access fund materials, please contact us below. 

Past performance of Pinnacle Partners OZ Funds is not indicative of future results. There can be no assurance that the fund’s objectives will be achieved or that cash distributions will, in fact, be made or, if made, whether those distributions will be made when or in the amount anticipated or that certain tax benefits will be available to investors. An investment in the fund is illiquid, speculative, and will involve significant risks. Full details about the fund and its associated risks can be found in the fund offering documents. 

Nothing in this blog post should be construed as tax advice.  Please confer with your tax adviser to determine if an investment in an OZ fund is right for you.