About SmartPlex Development
A Nevada-based affordable workforce housing developer building communities that last.
Company Overview
Who We Are
SmartPlex Development LLC is a Nevada-based affordable workforce housing development company committed to delivering institutional-quality housing solutions through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program.
SmartPlex operates with a mission-driven focus on closing the workforce housing gap in Nevada — leveraging deep local market knowledge, established community relationships, and a disciplined approach to LIHTC development.
Our Mission
"SmartPlex exists to close the workforce housing gap in Nevada by developing high-quality, financially sustainable affordable housing through the 9% and 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit programs."
Our Team
The People Behind SmartPlex
SmartPlex is led by an experienced team of housing development, finance, and community relations professionals based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
01
Chris Jones
Managing Member, SmartPlex Development LLC
Chris Jones founded SmartPlex Development with a direct, practical conviction: that Las Vegas's workforce, the people staffing its hotels, casinos, and essential services, deserves housing built with the same quality and care as anywhere else in the city, not a lesser standard dressed up as affordable. That conviction is grounded in nearly a decade of direct, hands-on experience. For close to eight years, and counting, Chris has worked as a real estate agent with Century 21, building a career centered on first-time homebuyers, clients working through credit challenges, veterans, and senior citizens, families for whom buying a home is rarely simple, and who deserve an agent who treats it that way. That experience, paired with years working Las Vegas's hospitality industry directly, gave Chris an intimate, ground-level understanding of the workforce that powers Southern Nevada's economy, and the housing gap so many of them face. Chris founded SmartPlex to close that gap at scale. Under the Auris Communities brand, he leads the company's institutional partnerships, land relationships, and development strategy, assembling the experienced advisory team and financing structures needed to deliver workforce housing through Nevada's competitive 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program. Auris at Nellis, a 48-unit workforce housing community in Las Vegas, is SmartPlex's first development, the proof of concept for a model Chris intends to repeat across many communities to come. Chris's goal is to build SmartPlex into one of the top 50 workforce housing developers in the United States, one community, and one family, at a time.
02
Frank Aguilar
Director of Strategic Relations, SmartPlex Development LLC
Frank Aguilar serves as Director of Strategic Relations at SmartPlex Development, bringing nearly two decades of top-producing Las Vegas real estate leadership and a deep network of civic, government, and industry relationships to the Auris Communities platform. Frank graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Economics. He started his real estate career in August 2007, and by 2010 had formed a team ranked #1 in the state of Nevada by Century 21. He went on to manage a Top 10 team in Nevada every year since, across multiple brokerages including Prudential Americana, Coldwell Banker, ERA Herman Group, and Shorewood Real Estate. In 2017, Frank returned to the Century 21 franchise, working alongside NAHREP past president Juan Martinez as managing broker for Americana's Summerlin location. Frank has been named a Top Residential Real Estate Agent by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, The Wall Street Journal, Zillow, Trulia, the Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA), and the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP). He has received Certificates of Commendation as a top performer in the real estate industry from Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, Nevada Senators Harry Reid, Dean Heller, and Catherine Cortez Masto, and Nevada Congressmen Ruben Kihuen and Steven Horsford. Frank was named to the Greater Las Vegas Association of REALTORS' "Top 40 Under 40" list by its Young Professionals Network, and is a founding member of the organization's Greater Las Vegas Chapter. In 2017, he spoke at the NAHREP National Conference in Dallas, TX, on the anniversary of 9/11, the same day President George W. Bush delivered a keynote address at the conference.
03
Lt. Col. Ken Evans
Founding Advisor, SmartPlex Development LLC
Colonel Kenneth Evans brings over 40 years of varied technical, managerial, and leadership experience to his role as a Founding Advisor at SmartPlex Development, where he draws on deep Las Vegas development roots and decades of large-scale project leadership to support the Auris Communities platform. Ken's hands-on Las Vegas development experience includes his work on Mi Casa En El Sol, a 40-home subsidized single-family housing development he remains proud of to this day. He also served on the Las Vegas Stadium Authority (LVSA) Board, where he concurrently chaired the LVSA Community Benefits Oversight Committee (CBOC), serving through the pre-development, construction, and initial two-year operational phases of Allegiant Stadium, home of the Las Vegas Raiders. Ken currently serves as a Community Programs Advisor for M.Y.S. Firm within its Consulting Division, advising nonprofit, for-profit, and public-sector clients on developing community programming plans for implementation within their region. He has also been a small business owner, and his leadership and entrepreneurial background led to his selection in September 2013 as President of the Urban Chamber of Commerce, a role he held for nine years. During his tenure, he was instrumental in forging strategic alliances, creating new partnerships, growing Chamber membership, and better positioning small, diverse Chamber businesses to pursue procurement opportunities across new, emerging, and existing markets. Ken's technical foundation runs deep. He served as Commander for Air Force engineering organizations in both Iraq and Afghanistan, supervising and managing 150 to 200 personnel at any given time. As Commander in Iraq, he was responsible for $35 million in planning, development, and operations and maintenance activities. In Afghanistan, his responsibilities expanded to overseeing 54 sites and managing $64 million in master planning, site development, construction, and project management activities. In 2010, Ken was recognized as the top Reserve Air Force engineering officer, receiving the Air Force Civil Engineering Officer Manager of the Year award for the Air Reserve Component.
04
Delvin Hall
LIHTC and Capital Advisor, SmartPlex Development LLC
Delvin Hall is a multifaceted real estate professional with over a decade of experience spanning development, asset management, and acquisitions. He has held roles at industry leaders including CBRE, Skanska Commercial Development, and BRIDGE Housing, where he managed entitlement, predevelopment, and asset repositioning across market-rate and affordable projects. His portfolio includes the entitlement of over 1,000 affordable housing units across the West Coast, acquisitions and rehab of over 500+ units in California, completion of a 181-unit development in Oakland, CA, development of a 550,000 SF Class A mixed-use office and retail project in Bellevue, WA, and the entitlement of a 330-unit multifamily tower in downtown Seattle. As the founding principal of Onyx Equity Partners, Delvin leads a mission-aligned firm focused on delivering and preserving housing across the affordability spectrum. Onyx advises public agencies, mission-driven organizations, and developers through acquisition strategy, development advisory, and capital structuring, with a commitment to equity and execution. At SmartPlex, Delvin serves as LIHTC and Capital Advisor, bringing that same depth of experience directly to Auris at Nellis and the broader SmartPlex pipeline, advising on capital structuring, tax credit strategy, and the institutional relationships needed to bring workforce housing developments from concept to execution. Delvin is a licensed real estate broker in Georgia, Washington, and California, and a CORO Affordable Housing Leadership Network Fellow. He serves on the ULI San Francisco DEI Committee, serves on the board of Housing Action Coalition, and is co-creator of the Developer Pathway Program, created to expand technical assistance to BIPOC developers in California.
What Drives Us
Core Values
Transparency
Open communication with every stakeholder, at every stage of development.
Community Impact
Building housing that transforms neighborhoods and uplifts residents.
Investor Integrity
Rigorous underwriting and honest representation of every opportunity.
Execution Excellence
Institutional-grade project management from site control to certificate of occupancy.
Our Approach
The LIHTC Development Model
The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program is the federal government's primary tool for encouraging private investment in affordable housing. Since 1986, it has financed the creation of millions of affordable rental units nationwide.
SmartPlex's resident services model — the Upward Mobility Initiative — is built into every Auris Communities development from day one, engineering a direct pathway for residents from affordable housing to first-time homeownership.
Our approach to community partnerships is exemplified by Auris at Nellis, where SmartPlex has executed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada granting exclusivity on the 2.35-acre site, with PSA or JV terms currently being negotiated — a faith-based partnership that strengthens both the LIHTC application and the long-term community mission.
SmartPlex utilizes the 9% LIHTC competitive allocation to finance projects. Tax credit equity forms the primary capital stack — meaning investors receive federal tax credits over a 10-year period in exchange for equity investment in our housing developments.
This structure aligns incentives: investors receive attractive risk-adjusted returns through tax benefits, while communities gain quality housing that serves the workforce at affordable rents. SmartPlex manages every phase — from site control and entitlements through construction, lease-up, and long-term compliance.