Buchalter

Real Estate Finance

Michael Williamson sits on the Board of Buchalter, and is Chair of the firm’s Real Estate Practice Group which includes the Community Development Finance group. Michael’s practice includes equity and debt finance, tax credits, opportunity zones, real estate fund formation, syndicated investments, and portfolio and syndicated credit facilities.

Michael represents the spectrum of transaction participants including investors, fund sponsors, joint ventures, lenders and borrowers nationwide in all real estate product types.   He lectures frequently on legal and financing issues, opportunity zones, historic preservation, tax credits, and housing issues.

Michael is active in community affairs in his hometown of Pasadena. He was Chair of the City Planning Commission and Chair of the Pasadena Board of Zoning Appeals. He is founder, past president and vice president of development of Heritage Housing Partners, a nonprofit for-sale housing developer.

In 2019 & 2020, Michael was selected as a finalist by the Los Angeles Business Journal for the prestigious “Leader in Law” award.

Finance Represent agents, participant banks and borrowers in secured and unsecured credit facilities with entrepreneurial borrowers, publicly traded real estate investment trusts, commercial finance companies, building service companies, subscription facilities and various manufacturing companies, with transactions ranging from $55 million to $1.5 billion. Institutional and opportunistic lenders in hundreds of real property secured acquisition, bridge, mini-perm construction, tax exempt financings for affordable housing, hotels, resorts, data centers, ports, multifamily, industrial, land development, single family and office properties ranging in size from $4 million to $350 million, including co-lending arrangements. Lenders in connection with restructurings, workouts, receiverships, litigation, bankruptcy, ABC, judicial and non-judicial foreclosures. Community Development Finance Lenders, investors, developers and stakeholders in tax credit, community development and PPP projects in over 500 transactions involving  local, state and federal subsidies including low income housing tax credits, historic tax credits, new markets and renewable energy tax credits using conventional and tax exempt bond financing. Project sizes range from $2 million to $1.3 billion in over than 37 states. Closed one of the earliest Opportunity Zone project investments in Q3 of 2018. Real Estate Investing and Restructuring Sponsors in multiple joint ventures for institutional clients with related acquisitions and dispositions of office and industrial properties ranging in size from $2 million to $350 million for all product types including senior assisted living, light industrial, office, retail, hotel, multifamily and for-sale residential properties nationwide. Including, associated follow-on leasing, financing, restructuring and disposition activity. Restructuring activity has included removal and replacement of JV partners across troubled portfolios.

Recognitions

Best Lawyers in America, Litigation – Real Estate, 2026

Immediate Past Chair, City Planning Commission Chair, Pasadena Board of Zoning Appeals Founder, Past President, and Vice President of development of Heritage Housing Partners, a nonprofit for-sale housing developer.

Admissions California Education Loyola Law School, J.D. Pomona College, B.A.