Housing Finance Attorneys Join Ballard Spahr

Gina A. Hough—a prominent housing finance lawyer with a national practice that touches all aspects of the industry—and Trevor J. Cardo, a trusted associate to Gina, have joined Ballard Spahr’s national Finance Department and Housing Finance practice, firm Chair Peter Michaud announced today. Gina joined as senior counsel and is resident in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office, while Trevor joined as an associate in New York.

“In the world of housing finance, Gina Hough is a standard-bearer,” said Mary Jo George, who co-leads the Housing Finance practice alongside Thomas A. Hauser and Anna A. Mahaney. “She’s developed a well-earned reputation for consistently applying strategy to elevate the service she provides her clients. Together, she and Trevor will build on our national platform, deepen our existing agency relationships, and further enhance our value to clients.”

A former vice president and deputy general counsel at Fannie Mae, Gina counsels national lending clients in connection with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and HUD-insured multifamily financings. Her experience includes financing apartment complexes, assisted living facilities, elder-care facilities, intermediate-care facilities, and senior housing. Trevor represents commercial real estate lenders in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac multifamily housing acquisitions, refinancings, and assumptions.  

Gina and Trevor are accompanied by Roberto Porras, who who will be a first-year associate on the team upon his admission to the New York bar. Gina, Trevor, and Roberto follow Garland W. Gantt, III who joined the Housing Finance practice and Washington, D.C. office in late August. All four joined Ballard Spahr from the law firm of Carlton Fields.

“Ballard Spahr is known throughout the housing finance industry for the national scope and diversity of its work and the strength of its partnership with a wide range of clients,” Gina said. “Joining Ballard will amplify the service Garland, Trevor, Roberto, and I can provide, and I am looking forward to the exciting changes ahead for the practice and the firm.”

On January 1, 2025, Ballard Spahr will combine with Lane Powell, a regional leader in the Pacific Northwest that is nationally recognized in the area of seniors housing and long-term care. Its team advises on regulatory issues, compliance and risk management, transactional matters, real estate, tax, and litigation.

For media inquiries, please contact Will Ashenmacher at 612.371.5792.