Social Finance Impact First Fund Announces New Investment to Address Critical Capital Gap in Child Care Sector

$2 million loan to Care Access Real Estate® will create pathways for economic opportunity for underserved communities 

(Boston, MA)—Today, Social Finance, the national nonprofit and registered investment advisor, announced a new investment through the Social Finance Impact First Fund, a one-stop solution for investing in funds that prioritize social and environmental impact. The Impact First Fund is providing a $2 million loan to Care Access Real Estate (CARE), a real estate fund focused on addressing the critical shortage of quality, licensed child care in the United States. 

The early child care sector in the United States represents a $60 billion industry facing a massive supply shortage due to profitability challenges for providers. This shortage places a significant burden on families, with parents of young children increasingly reporting that their employment was impacted by child care issues—many parents have felt forced to quit jobs or education due to child care challenges. 

CARE is a private real estate fund managed by Mission Driven Finance® dedicated to alleviating the critical shortage of child care while expanding economic opportunity for women and families in underserved communities in the United States. CARE invests in residential and commercial properties, providing stable, affordable leases to child care providers—many of whom are women and people of color serving families across income levels. By focusing on real estate—the largest cost and barrier for many providers—CARE enables small-scale, community-rooted businesses to grow and thrive. CARE’s model also includes a purchase option that allows child care providers to build wealth through property ownership. The Impact First Fund’s $2 million investment, in the form of a bridge loan, will enable CARE to acquire residential and commercial properties specifically for child care facilities.  

“CARE is addressing fundamental barriers to economic opportunity with an innovative, scalable model that prioritizes impact along with financial stability. This investment represents exactly the type of catalytic capital deployment that the Social Finance Impact First Fund was designed to support,” said Kirstin Hill, President & COO at Social Finance. 

CARE supports its provider tenants with affordable leases, and works alongside community partners to provide technical assistance and business coaching. By acting as a child care-friendly landlord and offering a purchase option after an initial lease period, CARE helps providers stabilize and grow their businesses, directly addressing capital gaps that have long constrained the sector. When fully licensed, the current CARE portfolio will have created 268 additional seats of child care capacity (as of June 30, 2025, since inception). 

“CARE addresses one of the most persistent challenges in early childhood care—real estate—by offering providers the opportunity to build wealth and a pathway to asset ownership while expanding access to quality child care in underserved communities,” said Laura Kohn, VP of Care & Education at Mission Driven Finance. “Social Finance’s loan enables CARE to continue increasing the number of child care seats. More available child care means more workforce participation for more families.” 

CARE’s real estate model addresses systemic barriers in the child care sector, where razor-thin profit margins have led to inadequate supply, especially in low-income communities. The organization plans to create and preserve thousands of quality child care seats while building wealth for providers through eventual property ownership opportunities. 

“The Social Finance Impact First Fund helps investors channel philanthropic capital into compelling opportunities for impact. This new investment in CARE is an exciting addition to the portfolio for our investors, including individuals, donor-advised funds, and foundations pursuing impact-first investing, as they directly address critical capital gaps and contribute to a more equitable future for underserved communities,” said Stephen Vicinelli, Vice President, Impact Investments at Social Finance. 

Launched in July 2023, the Impact First Fund provides a holistic, diversified portfolio of catalytic investments for individuals and institutions looking for a straightforward and efficient way to pursue impact-first investment opportunities that support meaningful and measurable change for people and the planet. The Impact First Fund has now invested across a variety of issue areas, including affordable housing, climate, and economic mobility, demonstrating the Fund’s ability to identify and support a diverse array of impact opportunities. 

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About Social Finance  

Social Finance (SF Advisors, LLC) is a national nonprofit and registered investment advisor. We work with the public, private, and social sectors to create partnerships and investments that measurably improve lives. Since our founding in 2011, we have mobilized more than $400 million in new investments designed to help people and communities realize improved outcomes in workforce and economic mobility, health, and housing. Learn more at socialfinance.org.   

About Mission Driven Finance® 

Mission Driven Finance is an impact asset management firm dedicated to building a financial system that ensures good businesses have access to sufficient, affordable capital. Built from the ground up with a single purpose—to make it easy to invest in your community—all of their funds and structured products are designed to close financial gaps that will close opportunity gaps. They work with local and national investors to help them create the impact they want and work with businesses and community partners to help them get the capital they need. Mission Driven Finance was launched in 2016 in San Diego, CA, and is a Certified B Corporation. In 2025, Mission Driven Finance was selected again for ImpactAssets’ IA 50 Fund Manager list*, a category for experienced impact fund managers with a minimum three-year track record. Learn more at missiondrivenfinance.com. 

Mission Driven Finance, LLC is an Exempt Reporting Adviser. CRD # 295160/SEC#:802-114710 

*Please visit impactassets.org/IA-50/#criteria to review the IA 50 Fund Manager list selection criteria and methodology.