“In the U.S. every year we create 50,000 units of affordable housing, and we lose 50,000 units of affordable housing.”  – Jonathan Rose, renowned urban planner and developer.

“I personally know at least 15 people sleeping in their vehicles," said TJ Carella, an emergency nurse. "But there are definitely more than that." (KCRA-TV, 2025). Emergency nurses at Stanford University Hospital are choosing to sleep in vans between shifts. These nurses need to be on call and within a 30-minute drive of the hospital, but many can't afford to live nearby in Palo Alto.

“The rise in cost of living outpaces my income. We ran the numbers and figured out it’d be cheaper to live out-of-state and have me commute back”. Kyle Conforti (40) leaves his family in Tennessee every week to travel to California for work. (The Guardian, 2023).

Why Merton?

  • Donors have a unique opportunity to drive lasting, systemic changes by funding residences that stay affordable forever and fund savings accounts for Essential Workers.

  • Our pilot in West Palm Beach was the first step in a national Moonshot strategy inspired by Columbia University’s Housing Moonshot report — aiming to create 1 million residences across the U.S. using Merton’s innovative approach.

  • Gifts are recycled into new residences as the project’s debt is refinanced. Rents rise marginally with inflation over 10 years, allowing for new loans to pay back and reinvest the initial philanthropy. Residents save funds to buy a home and build wealth for their families.

  • Donors continue to direct funds long-term through a DAF, while developers and Merton receive market compensation, and all housing remains nonprofit-owned and tax-exempt.

  • Launching by developing a 20-residence pilot as a model to quickly address the city’s 12,400-unit shortfall. This project will serve Essential Workers such as nurses, firefighters, and teachers earning 60–120% of Area Median Income (AMI).

  • Gifts are credited back to donors at 100% of gift, rather than the after-tax gift (about 63%), growing a donor’s philanthropic pool with Merton. Initial gifts can double the number of residences every 10 years, compounding donor impact and legacy.

  • Our initial project pipeline will be executed by Sam Fisch Development, The Frisbie Group, and Affiliated Development, which together can deliver over 1,000 residences over 5 years.