Michael F. Fitzpatrick

CPA

Partner

+1 (608) 240 2609

Michael Fitzpatrick is a partner with Baker Tilly and the executive vice president and treasurer of BT REI, LLC, the wholly owned real estate investment sponsor subsidiary of the firm.

Michael has been with Baker Tilly since 2000 and has served two terms on the firm’s board of partners. Michael leads our private real estate investment practice, with an emphasis on tax-advantaged investments including Delaware Statutory Trusts (DSTs), Opportunity Zones and New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC).

Michael also consults directly with family offices, real estate funds and high net worth investors to source, vet, structure and close off-market real estate investments, including 1031 exchanges.

Experience

Oversees structuring of DST and Opportunity Zone investments through financial advisors, family offices and to accredited investors
Led and closed one of the first Reg. D private placement offerings of opportunity zone equity to raise $26 million for a $54 million mixed-use development in Madison, WI
Serves as partner-in-charge to provide New Markets Tax Credits advisory services to community development entities in their application for, and deployment of NMTC
Baker Tilly’s New Markets Tax Credits transaction team has placed more than $5 billion of NMTC allocation, and Mr. Fitzpatrick has personally overseen placement of over $1 billion of NMTC allocation with emphasis on CDE strategy, transaction sourcing, underwriting, structuring and closing
Closed 23 Regulation D private placements as lead placement agent, raising over $300 million in private placements since 2002 in a wide variety of industries including commercial real estate, manufacturing, land development and hospitality
Authored numerous successful NMTC applications garnering over $700 million of NMTC, and the NMTC team has collectively written over 100 successful applications securing over $5 billion of NMTC allocation
Serves as Investment Committee Chairman for The Valued Advisor Fund and The Business Valued Advisor Fund, Baker Tilly’s community development entities, which have won over $300 million of NMTC allocation

Thought leadership

Presenter – CalCPA Personal Financial Planning Virtual Conference (January 2021)
Co-authored article “Opportunity zones: post-election outlook” (January 2021)
Co-authored article “Hedge against an increase in the capital gain tax” (December 2020)
Speaker – ACPEN Signature: 2020 Tax Planning Ideas (November 2020)
Panelist – NAIOP 2020 CRE Converge: “So you think you know Opportunity Zones?” (October 2020)
Authored article “The value of asset allocation and portfolio diversification in tumultuous times” (April 2020)
Webcast presenter and author of “Using opportunity zones to win with your clients” for financial advisor continuing education credit through the RIA Channel (April 2020)
Webcast presenter and author of “Should YOU be an opportunity zone investor?” (March 2020)
Authored article “Calculating opportunity zone benefits to compare investment risk and return” (February 2020)
Panelist – IMN’s Opportunity Zones Forum (Los Angeles November 2019)
Authored article for WICPA On Balance magazine, “Opportunity Zones Update” (October 2019)
Panelist – IMN’s 5th Annual Real Estate Family Office and Private Wealth Management Forum (April 2019)
Panel moderator – Carmo Companies: The Real Estate Opportunity Zone Meeting (April, 2019)
Co-author of “EB5 2.0 – The Institutionalization of EB-5” (published January 2019)
Authored article for AREA Development, “Capitalizing on Opportunity Zones” (4th Quarter 2018)
Co-authored article for IIUSA, “Advent of the EB-5 Broker Dealer” (September 2017)
Authored article "EB-5 Securities Laws and the Role of a Broker-Dealer" Trade & Investment in America (Feb. 2017)
Panelist at the EB-5 Investors conference speaking on the expanding role of the broker dealer (January 2017)
Regular presenter on EB-5 at Baker Tilly International global, regional and tax conferences (2014-2016)
Panelist IIUSA EB-5 conference – Compliance with US securities laws and the role of broker dealers (Oct. 2016)
Three time panelist at the 2014-16 NYC Real Estate Expo speaking on EB-5
Panelist IIUSA EB-5 conference speaking on diversified capital stacks (October 2014)
Authored article for IIUSA’s Regional Center Business Journal, “Twinning EB-5 with New Markets Tax Credits to Enhance Transaction Quality and Returns” (June 2014)
Presented “New Markets Tax Credits” at the Texas Economic Development Council Spring Conference (March 2014)
Presented “NMTC: How to Partner with a Community Development Entity” at the 2014 Texas Association of Community Development Corporation Annual Community Development Conference (March 2014)
Presented “New Markets Tax Credit Financing Opportunities in NYC” at 2013 NYC Real Estate Expo (Oct. 2013)
Presented “EB-5 Program Basics” at Asian American Bar Association of New York’s Growth of the Asian Real Estate Segment and their Purchasing Power in NYC event (October 2013)