Jacksonville Business Journal quoted MMM’s Matt Peurach in an article covering the benefits and challenges of Opportunity Zones in Jacksonville, Florida.
Opportunity Zones have been created in Jacksonville to incentivize development in economically disadvantaged areas. By allowing investors to defer taxes on unrealized capital gains, Opportunity Zones can help stimulate economic growth for major projects around the city. However, among a variety of real estate development challenges like zoning, permitting, and raising capital, there is a limited pool of investors that can take advantage due to the complex regulations as well as rules for small businesses operating in the zone.
“They need to hit certain thresholds in terms of being performed within the Opportunity Zone,” Peurach said. “Pick a business where the employees could be traveling all over the country trying to sell a product, that could have limitations on that business satisfying the Opportunity Zone rules for qualifications.”
The article also discusses the future of Opportunity Zones in Jacksonville with the proposed congressional bill that aims to extend the zones and reform them, which would include enhanced reporting requirements, decertification of high-income zones, establishment of a state and community dynamism fund to create grants, and allowance for a fund of funds to allow opportunity funds to invest in others.
