Get OZ Ready

Opportunity Zones are entering a new era. Created to encourage private investment in economically distressed communities, Opportunity Zones use federal tax incentives to help attract capital to designated census tracts across the United States.

Originally established by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, the Opportunity Zones program was made permanent and updated in 2025. The next generation of Opportunity Zones — OZ 2.0 — begins in 2027, with new zones designated every 10 years.

CDFA's Opportunity Zones Resource Hub brings together the latest news, resources, education, and connections to help development finance professionals understand what's changing, identify opportunities, and get OZ Ready.

OZ 2.0 is coming. Now is the time to prepare.

New Opportunity Zone designations take effect January 1, 2027, making 2026 a critical year for communities to turn eligible tracts into investment-ready opportunities.

States and territories are now moving through the OZ 2.0 nomination and designation process. For communities, the work shouldn't stop at identifying eligible census tracts. Effective Opportunity Zone strategies connect designation decisions to local economic development priorities, viable projects and businesses, infrastructure needs, and opportunities to attract private capital.

Designation is only the beginning.

Successful Opportunity Zones need projects, partnerships, financing strategies, and local capacity ready to turn designation into investment.

• Follow the designation process. Monitor state-level developments, tract nominations, federal guidance, and emerging designation trends.
• Select tracts strategically. Evaluate eligible census tracts alongside local economic development priorities, existing projects, infrastructure needs, and investment opportunities.
• Prepare projects for investment. Identify viable projects, develop strong project prospectuses, understand financing needs, and be ready to communicate opportunities to Qualified Opportunity Funds and investors.
• Build the capital stack. Pair Opportunity Zone equity with bonds, Tax Increment Financing (TIF), tax credits, revolving loan funds, and other public and private financing tools to improve project feasibility and investment readiness.
• Create opportunities for local businesses. Look beyond real estate development to strategies that help Qualified Opportunity Zone Businesses access capital, grow, and create jobs.
• Stay current on the rules. Follow evolving compliance, monitoring, reporting, and implementation requirements as the OZ 2.0 framework develops.
• Learn from the field. Connect with peers to identify effective strategies, understand emerging approaches, and avoid common challenges.

CDFA can help you get OZ Ready.

From understanding what's changing to building an investment strategy, CDFA connects communities and practitioners with the knowledge, tools, and people they need to make the most of OZ 2.0.

The Opportunity Zones Resource Hub is continually updated as OZ 2.0 unfolds, bringing together timely news, resources, educational opportunities, and access to a national network of development finance professionals.

Learn how to put OZ 2.0 to work.

The CDFA Opportunity Zones Learning Series provides guidance from national experts on tract selection, Opportunity Zone Funds, project preparation, TIF, bonds, tax credits, revolving loan funds, compliance, and strategies for attracting private investment.

Connect with the people doing the work.

Through the CDFA Opportunity Zones Networking Circle, CDFA members can engage directly with professionals working on Opportunity Zone projects and investments. Peer-focused conversations provide a place to share experiences, discuss challenges, explore emerging strategies, and learn what's working in communities across the country.

Build a stronger OZ financing strategy.

Opportunity Zones Finance Week equips communities and practitioners with the knowledge and strategies to attract investment and maximize OZ 2.0, with three courses covering key legislative updates, rural Opportunity Zones, enhanced incentives, and approaches to financing and investment.

Turn designation into investment — and investment into impact.

OZ 2.0 creates a new opportunity to align private capital with local economic development priorities, but realizing that opportunity requires preparation.

For development finance agencies, developers, investors, financial institutions, CDFIs, and other practitioners, getting OZ Ready means more than knowing where the new Opportunity Zones are. It means having projects, partnerships, financing strategies, and local capacity in place to attract capital and put it to work.

CDFA is helping communities prepare through timely information, practical education, development finance expertise, and a national network of professionals working to turn Opportunity Zone investment into meaningful economic and community impact.

OZ 2.0 starts in 2027. Get OZ Ready now.