This month, the Novogradac Journal of Tax Credit profiled younger leaders and rising stars in the community development space, including NTCIC’s Heather Buethe. Joining the company in 2018, Heather has directed transaction closing and asset management efforts for Historic Tax Credit (HTC) and New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) investments and has facilitated nearly $2 billion in equity. Take a look at what Heather had to say about her journey through the community development and tax credit finance world.
Rising Stars: Novogradac Spotlights Younger Leaders in Community Development
Nick Decicco, Brad Stanhope, Novogradac
Playing competitive softball for nearly two decades shaped Heather Buethe’s approach.
“Playing softball, you can’t do it with just one person,” said Buethe (pronounced BEE-thee), the senior director of project and asset management at National Trust Community Investment Corporation (NTCIC), where she oversees the historic tax credit (HTC) and new markets tax credit (NMTC) project and asset management team. “I’m super competitive, but you can’t be successful in softball without having good teammates and you can’t do it without interacting with your team and building strong relationships.”
“It’s about working as a team and moving toward the same goal.”
Merrill Hoopengardner, who led NTCIC from early 2016 until last December, said she sees that connection.
“I would think her softball experience was very formative in the sense that even if you have a star player in one or two positions, you have to have everyone on the field meeting a minimum level of standards,” Hoopengardner said. “While she’s brilliant, she’s also humble in a way that she thinks first about how to bring other people’s expertise into it. She’s a good listener and will work with people in groups and in private settings to understand what others are thinking. I can definitely see playing college-level sports as a way to learn how to work with other high-powered people and to get the most out of each person.”
Softball lessons–along with an elite understanding of the financial and legal worlds–have guided Buethe through a career that involves work with law firms, a major financial institution, and now NTCIC.
“Heather is very good at what she does,” said Thomas Boccia, CPA, a partner in Novogradac’s Cleveland office. “She’s facilitating projects, troubleshooting, and when there are issues, coming in and understanding. She asks questions and helps. Heather gets it quickly and picks up things.”
Click below to read the full article and profiles of the rising stars of community development.
