Austin, TX
Samsung Employee Describes Decades of Commitment to the U.S. and Texas
In 2021, Samsung Austin Semiconductor announced the construction of a new semiconductor fabrication facility in Taylor, Texas. The project is the second of its kind in Texas — with the first being in Austin. To a longtime employee such as Rafael Lainez, Director of Manufacturing Engineering at Samsung Austin Semiconductor, the new fabrication plant is the latest indication of Samsung’s longtime commitment to the U.S. For Lainez, much has changed over the years at Samsung. Despite the many changes Lainez has witnessed, however, some things have remained the same: Samsung’s commitment to being a proud U.S. employer and a good neighbor and upstanding corporate citizen of Central Texas and its dedication to serving the local community.
A Samsung Employee Since 1997
In 1997, Rafael Lainez started his career at Samsung at the Austin campus. Lainez recalls that as he drove an hour and a half from his home in San Antonio, he was excited to begin his first day of work and that the environment at Samsung was immediately welcoming. “When I got to the office, I was lucky in the sense that I had friends waiting for me and ready to show me around,” he said.
Rafael Lainez holding a 12-inch wafer at Samsung Austin Semiconductor.
As a skilled engineer who already had valuable experience, Lainez says he was drawn to Samsung because at the time, the company’s operations in Austin were being launched as the biggest and strongest in Texas. The company provided an opportunity for Lainez to work on cutting-edge DRAM memory products with 8-inch wafers, with which he did not have previous experience. The chance to learn something new and be a part of the most advanced technology around was a key point in him joining the Samsung team.
Rafael Lainez examining a wafer using a semiconductor inspection microscope.
“Never a Dull Moment”
In early 1997, construction on the first Samsung Austin Semiconductor fabrication plant was underway. As Lainez recalls, the site was originally a corn field. “Because it was originally farmland, there were absolutely no trees around,” Lainez says. “Samsung planted every single tree on the property!” For Lainez, perhaps the clearest indication of the scale of the operation was the constant construction taking place. He says, “It was impressive — a massive undertaking. I think at one point, Samsung had all the cranes in the city working on our site 24/7.”
At the time, there was a lot of local excitement over Samsung’s investment in a U.S. semiconductor fabrication facility – the first foreign-owned company to build a fab here – and entry into Central Texas. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on March 28, 1996, and featured the University of Texas Longhorn Band and a rodeo. It truly was a big Texas welcome. A lot of time has passed since the first shovel hit dirt, but Lainez has been at Samsung Austin Semiconductor for nearly the entire journey. Over the years, he has remained at the company not only because of the opportunities it has presented him, but also because of the culture Samsung has cultivated.
Lainez started as a Capacitor Module Engineer on the Process Architecture Team before moving to Product Introduction, where he brought memory products from 0.35µm technology to 100nm products to market. Over the years, he’s worked on SRAM, DRAM and Flash memory products, as well as application processors and other products at System LSI. Most recently, he has been involved in Foundry Operations, which includes manufacturing for a wide range of customers. Lainez says that working at Samsung Austin Semiconductor means there is “never a dull moment.” He adds that “Samsung has always been an innovative company, and I’m proud to work for a company that can adapt and respond to the needs of our customers and the marketplace.”
Rafael Lainez leading a meeting at Samsung Austin Semiconductor.
He has also been through the Samsung Leadership Program and had the opportunity to lead new departments on several occasions, which has given him a fuller perspective of his work and Samsung’s uniqueness. These departments include Metrology, Defects, Integration, Materials and Analysis. For as dynamic as his career has been, Lainez believes the most meaningful part of working at Samsung Austin Semiconductor has been the people. About his colleagues, he says, “A lot of them are still here, and I have met people that started out of college, married Samsung teammates and formed families. That is what has made Samsung Austin Semiconductor special to me.”
An Everlasting Bond
Rafael Lainez with a colleague at the Samsung Austin Semiconductor office.
For Lainez and his team, Samsung Austin Semiconductor’s profits exceeding $1 million and turning a profit at a fabrication plant outside of South Korea for the first time was meaningful milestone. However, they were surprised by the reaction they received when they reported the news back to headquarters: how much of that profit had they shared with the local community? To Lainez, this was a defining moment. Recalling the memory now, he says, “It reinforced Samsung’s values and that Samsung cares, not just about operating profits, but also about the well-being of the entire community and everyone associated with the company. And that is a very memorable and proud moment that I will always carry with me.”
“We’re thrilled to expand our relationship with the team at NRP and our focus on the Affordable Housing market in
The transaction represents Safehold’s second transaction with NRP in
Safehold established a dedicated Affordable Housing team in 2025 and has continued to expand its investment into the sector. Additional information is available at www.safeholdaffordablehousing.com.
About Safehold:
Safehold Inc. (NYSE: SAFE) is revolutionizing real estate ownership by providing a new and better way for owners to unlock the value of the land beneath their buildings. Having created the modern ground lease industry in 2017, Safehold continues to help owners of high quality multifamily, affordable housing, office, industrial, hospitality, student housing, life science and mixed-use properties generate higher returns with less risk. The Company, which is taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT), seeks to deliver safe, growing income and long-term capital appreciation to its shareholders. Additional information on Safehold is available on its website at www.safeholdinc.com.
About The NRP Group:
The NRP Group is a vertically integrated developer, owner, builder, and manager of best-in-class multifamily housing with a mission to create exceptional rental housing communities for individuals and families, regardless of income. Since its founding in 1994, NRP has developed more than 62,000 apartment homes and currently manages over 30,000 residential units. Through its disciplined approach to vetting opportunities, NRP has established a track record of delivering impressive returns for investors. The company’s formidable size and depth of talent provide the experience and infrastructure necessary to execute developments of varying degrees of complexity and scope in both urban-infill and suburban locations, including market-rate, affordable, mixed-income, and senior housing. The NRP Group has been consistently named a largest developer and builder in the U.S. on the NMHC “Top 50” lists, the Top 5 on the Multi-Housing News’ “Top Multifamily Developers” list, named a Top Affordable Housing Developer by Affordable Housing Finance, and has won three NAHB Pillar awards since 2020 for Development, Construction and Ones to Watch. The NRP Group has become the top multifamily developer in the U.S. that creates both affordable and market-rate housing at a national scale. Based on over 30 years of experience and expertise, NRP provides construction and property management services to outside owners and developers. For additional information, visit www.nrpgroup.com.
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SOURCE Safehold
AUSTIN (Nexstar) – During a Texas Senate Business and Commerce hearing Wednesday, lawmakers heard invited testimony examining soaring property and casualty insurance costs. Testimony focused on the need for more affordable options and the need to address the role of AI.
Increased costs
Amanda Crawford, the Commissioner of Insurance at the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI), acknowledged the reality of rising insurance costs for everyday Texans.
“The past few years have been very, very difficult. The average annual homeowner premium in Texas has increased from under $2,000 in 2020 to over $3,500 today. It’s a 79% increase in six years. That is a tremendous burden for Texans, especially for a necessary product like home insurance,” Crawford told lawmakers Wednesday.
Crawford went on to clarify that this increase can be attributed to increases in home values and claim costs related to severe weather.
“Annual homeowners’ losses averaged 5.5 billion from 2015 to 2020, rising to 9.1 billion from 2021 to 2025.” Crawford went on to say that “Last year alone, the National Weather Service recorded 902 hailstorms in Texas. The next closest state, Kansas, had 375.”
Holding insurance companies accountable
Crawford clarified that the TDI requires insurance companies to elaborate on their filings to ensure that Texans are not subject to unfair practices and prices.
“My expectations are that every rate filing submitted to TDI gets a careful review. We examine every statutory filing for statutory compliance. We verify the math, we scrutinize assumptions, we make them show their work”
According to the Texas Insurance Code, the rate review process conducted by the TDI does not explicitly focus on affordability.
“There is not a purpose in there around affordability. It is about driving market competition. It’s about making sure they’re not excessive, but then they’re also adequate. And it’s about having market forces drive the rates that are filed. So I think that’s an interesting perspective when you look at it, because that really frames the whole rate review process as it has been put into law.”
Insurance company officials say they are also focused on affordable costs.
“Our industry is not just saying, hey, legislators go fix all this. We are working all the time to bring down costs. It’s a good business decision because it helps us be more competitive,” said Scot Kibbe, the Vice President for State Government Relations at the American Property College for Insurance Association.
Concerns of price surveillance
Senator Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, questioned whether insurance companies may be using technological advances, such as AI, to participate in price surveillance, a tactic to maximize profits.
“It sounds like, to some extent, every industry, with the advent of technological advantages we didn’t use to have, is able to create a special price just for you to find out your breaking point,” Johnson said.
David Bolduc with the Office of Public Insurance Counsel noted that there are protections in statute against companies charging different prices for the same coverage. But he added that the practice can be difficult to detect.
“I don’t know that TDI has the ability to monitor that. I mean, we hear about it,” Bolduc said in response to Johnson. “I think, if you could do something in statute that would allow us to report it, or would allow TDI to take action about it, that might be useful in terms of monitoring it,” Bolduc added.
Earlier this month, the TDI released a “use of artificial intelligence” bulletin to set expectations on how “regulated entities will govern the development, acquisition, and the use of AI technologies in their operations.”
Crawford says this bulletin will help address price surveillance concerns by reminding companies of Texas Insurance codes related to unfair discrimination and deceptive practices.
“That’s one of the reasons for putting out the AI bulletin, the expectations and the consumer protection around the use of that data, and what they are using that for,” Crawford said.
Potential solutions
Bolduc called on lawmakers to reexamine AI’s role in the industry. He also asked lawmakers to look into making coverage changes more transparent.
“It might be useful to continue looking for ways to be transparent about coverage changes. Notices of material change don’t seem to be working particularly well in the sense that we get a lot of phone calls from people saying they don’t understand what happened to them,” Bolduc said Wednesday.
Billy Crocker, Senior Vice President of Alliant Insurance Services, says the best way to fix pricing is to drive up competition between insurance companies.
“I think creating a lot of competition is the best way to drive this down, both for personal and business lines,” Crocker told lawmakers. “And then that brings the opportunity for access.”
Austin, TX
Forman Capital Provides $28.2 Million Lot Development Loan for a 253-Acre Mixed-Use Project Near Austin, Texas
Forman Capital, a leading private direct commercial real estate lender, has closed a $28,204,026 lot development loan for The Highlands, a planned 253-acre mixed-use community located along Manzano Mile at FM 1431 in Marble Falls, Texas, located on the edge of the broader Austin MSA. The borrower and developer is Rockspring, a Texas-based real estate firm with more than three decades of experience across the state’s most dynamic growth markets.
The Highlands stretches along Manzano Mile, encompassing single-family homes, rental apartments, and retail commercial uses on undeveloped land. The Forman Capital loan will fund horizontal development in advance of vertical construction, which will be performed by other developers and builders, and is expected to start in the fall.
The Forman Capital team that worked on the transaction includes Scott Mehlman, Ty Regnier, Brett Forman and Ben Jacobson.
“Forman Capital has always been drawn to developers who are doing something meaningful — not just building but genuinely adding real value to a community. The Highlands does exactly that, bringing much-needed housing and amenities to a city that has grown faster than its supply could keep pace with. We are proud to support Rockspring’s vision here,” said Brett Forman, Forman Capital Managing Partner.
“Marble Falls and the 71 Highway corridor are benefiting from the same powerful tailwinds driving growth across Texas, with the added advantage of a quality-of-life profile that is attracting both residents and businesses,” said Scott Mehlman, Forman Capital Partner and Chief Investment Officer. “The Highlands is exceptionally well-positioned to meet that demand, and we look forward to seeing this community take shape.”
About Forman Capital
Delray Beach, Florida-based Forman Capital provides private commercial real estate debt and equity financing for transactions ranging from $10 million to $100 million. The firm focuses on short-term construction financing, mezzanine debt, and preferred equity across various real estate asset classes and geographies. Company principals Brett Forman and Ben Jacobson have closed more than $3 billion in commercial real estate transactions since 2004. For more information, visit www.formancap.com.
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