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When the Opportunity Zones program was first announced, it was all about real estate, real estate, real estate. Fast forward a few years now and many are creating Opportunity Zone Funds to take advantage of the tremendous tax benefits offered by developing businesses within the Opportunity Zones marketplace as well. What kind of businesses? In this podcast, HCVT tax partner Blake Christian goes over some of the new and unique target markets and interesting developments within the industry and how some inventive businesses are using this program in many unique ways.

Listen to “Alternative Uses of Opportunity Zone Investments” on Spreaker.

It’s certainly not “business as usual” when it comes to Opportunity Zones. Even though the program has matured into many diverse business opportunities and not just real estate, we’re only at the tip of the iceberg when it comes to innovate usages and target markets. Listen to this podcast as Mr. Christian uncovers some hidden gems that may be going unnoticed so far, but not for long as the word continues to spread about the many successes Opportunity Zones boasts.

Opportunity Zones make great options for businesses as well as real estate situations such as 1031 exchange options. But you have to know all the details, nuances, and the loopholes you’ll need to jump through to make this program successful. That’s why if you operate a company in the variety of fields Mr. Christain details on the show, you may want to give some serious thought into using your capital gains for business growth in these regions. (one field in particular is poised for tremendous growth, and you’d probably never guess what it is!)

There’s a lot of planning involved and you’d be smart to get expert assistance as you navigate these Opportunity Zones waters. So contact Blake directly at 562-305-8050 , or visit his www.hcvt.com website for more information.


ABOUT OUR GUEST: Blake Christian

Blake brings over 35 years of experience providing tax consulting and compliance services to clients that include multinational, publicly traded corporations, as well as closely held owner-managed businesses. Throughout his entire career, Blake has specialized in federal, state and local tax incentive programs. Blake is leading the firm’s efforts in providing tax consulting services for Qualified Opportunity Zones. A thought leader, Blake has been recently interviewed by US News and World Reports and other national publications providing insights into this powerful, yet complex, tax incentive program and has authored several articles and HCVT Tax Alerts about Qualified Opportunity Zones (OZ) and Qualified Opportunity Funds. Blake has developed unique insights into OZ strategies for real estate developers and investors, as well as for operating business start-ups and expansions. In addition to tax incentive consulting, Blake provides partnership and individual tax planning and compliance services. His industry experience is broad and includes manufacturing and distribution, service companies, restaurant, shipping and transportation, energy and healthcare.

Blake joined HCVT to open the firm’s Long Beach office over 26 years ago and opened the firm’s Park City, Utah office in 2014. Blake has served, in leadership positions on numerous community boards including the Long Beach Community Foundation as Vice Chair, Cal State Long Beach Ukleja Center for Ethical Leadership Governing Council, and the Long Beach Rotary where he served as president. Blake is also an active member of the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and served as chairperson and is a regular member of the Park City Rotary Club, The Egyptian Theater and the Park City Chamber of Commerce. Blake was named as one of the Top 10 California Accounting Professionals in 2015 and 2014. The Long Beach Chamber of Commerce awarded Blake the 2016 Community Spirit Award for his economic development work and leadership in the California Enterprise Zone program.

Blake is a frequent contributor to leading industry related publications. TaxConnections.com named Blake as one of the Top 50 Tax Bloggers in the US. Blake has been a contributing columnist for the AICPA CPA Insider, a past columnist for the AICPA Corporate Tax Insider Newsletter, and is a regular contributor to the Long Beach Business Journal as well as numerous other publications. He has lectured at a number of universities, including University of Southern California (MBT Program) and California State University Long Beach (Annual Tax Conference), BYU and University of Utah, as well as various business and tax forums throughout the country. Blake has also been a technical resource for many news organizations, including USA Today, Los Angeles Times, Press-Telegram, KTLA News, Park City TV, KNX NewsRadio, and KFI Radio KPCW.

Blake began his career at KPMG LLP and was admitted to its partnership. Blake holds a master’s of taxation from the University of Southern California and a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a minor in finance from California State University, Long Beach. Active in both the Long Beach and Park City communities. Blake supports the fundraising efforts of LB and PC Rotary, the LB and PC Community Foundations, Plant LB, The Egyptian Theater/ Save Our Stage and the National Ability Center.


IMPORTANT!
All information provided is for informational purposes only. Mapable USA is not a registered broker-dealer, funding portal, or investment advisor. This information presented on this website/podcast is not intended as legal or investment advice for anyone to make an investment in any particular company and is not intended for any companies to rely on this information to form an opinion to go public or not to go public or to do any type of offering of securities. Any information presented is not an offer or solicitation to purchase or sell any securities or financial products. None of the information on the Mapable USA podcast or website takes into account any individual person’s personal objectives, financial situation, needs, or particular circumstances. You must check with a securities attorney to find out if an offering is for you, or if you are going to be in the business of selling any type of securities, you need to make sure you are following your state and federal legislative law so you do not get into any troubles. Do not use the opinions as stated on this show as any way to form an opinion as what is wrong or right or what could be done for your business or as an investor. Mapable, LLC recommends you obtain your own financial, legal, and taxation advice before making any financial investment decision.