We helped acquire $1.5B+ worth of propertiesAffordable Housing EMD Financing — Built for Developers Who Need to Move Fast
A new financing solution designed to help affordable housing developers secure acquisitions without locking up critical predevelopment capital.
Duckfund and Yoke Management Partners have partnered to provide fast, flexible Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) financing tailored to the realities of affordable and workforce housing acquisitions. Together, we help developers compete more effectively, preserve liquidity, and scale acquisitions with confidence.
Preserve capital. Win more deals.
Affordable housing developers often face a major challenge during acquisitions: significant earnest money requirements that tie up capital needed for due diligence, predevelopment, and closing costs. Our partnership solves that problem by giving qualified sponsors access to:
EMD financing within 48 hours
No collateral requirements for eligible transactions
Flexible terms for affordable housing
Support for concurrent and larger acquisitions
Increased liquidity during predevelopment
Compatible with public financing approval timelines
Purpose-built for affordable housing
In today's market, developers need to act quickly while preserving capital for:
- Workforce housing
- Naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH)
- LIHTC and tax-credit developments
- Acquisition-rehab projects
- Mixed-income multifamily communities
- Mission-driven housing initiatives
Why this partnership matters
The partnership combines transaction speed with affordable housing expertise — helping developers move quickly while preserving financial flexibility.
- Duckfund brings a modern "sign now, pay later" EMD financing platform that allows sponsors to secure deals without freezing operating capital.
- Yoke Management Partners acquires and preserves naturally occurring affordable housing, balancing preservation with progress and profits with purpose, bringing the developer-side experience and community trust that connect this product to the affordable housing community.
Built for competitive markets
This program helps sponsors maintain momentum from LOI to closing without overextending balance sheets or delaying opportunities. In today's market, developers need to preserve capital for:
- Environmental and third-party reports
- Architectural and engineering work
- Entitlements and legal expenses
- Predevelopment costs
- Renovation planning and execution
How the EMD financing works
Beyond fast access to EMD capital, the Duckfund platform provides developers with operational flexibility designed for active acquisition pipelines, including:
Approval decisions in as little as 24 hours
Fully digital application and underwriting process
Ability to support multiple active deals simultaneously
Flexible extensions for longer diligence timelines
Scalable funding from small deposits to multimillion-dollar deals
Execution support from experienced real estate underwriters
Secure more affordable housing opportunities
The Duckfund + Yoke partnership is designed to help affordable housing developers accelerate acquisitions, preserve liquidity, and create long-term community impact.
Case studies
Partners and accelerators
Duckfund is a member of Galvanizer, Cardinal Ventures, and Launchpad accelerator at Stanford.
Frequently asked questions
Duckfund is a simple and fully digital experience with soft deposit financing.
For your convenience, here are answers to questions you may have.
What is Duckfund?
What is a soft deposit?
What are the requirements to finance an EMD with Duckfund?