The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals is launching a new trade organization to support Latino construction businesses and workers in building capacity, access to capital and creating business opportunities for its members.

The National Hispanic Construction Alliance (NHCA) will be led by veteran construction industry executive George Carrillo as CEO. Carrillo was formerly executive director of Latino Built, a nonprofit led by Latino-owned business contractors working with community and trade partners to improve opportunities in construction for Latino-owned businesses in Oregon.

“With a 23-year history of impacting national housing policy, a network of 40,000 members in nearly 100 chapters across the country, NAHREP will work together with the NHCA and with industry professionals and policymakers to advance Hispanics in the construction industry,” said Gary Acosta, NAHREP co-founder and CEO.

The new trade group seeks to address the construction industry’s labor shortage and support Latino contractors. Hispanics represent 27.7% of construction workers compared to 18.5% of the overall workforce, according to the Construction Employers Association, yet Latino contractors are underrepresented in the industry, NAHREP’s press release states.

“I am honored to join in the effort to provide future NHCA members with capacity building, access to working capital, and opportunity awareness,” Carrillo said. “Strengthening the role of the Latino contractor is essential to addressing labor shortfalls in the home builder industry and the housing industry in general.”

NHCA will have a separate national advisory board to establish the formal entity and ensure the representation of a cross-section of industry participants from throughout the country.

The first in-person meeting of the board will convene during L’ATTITUDE Sept. 27-30. L’ATTITUDE is a national platform that showcases the contributions of U.S. Latinos in business, media, politics, science, and technology. Co-founded by Acosta, the event is designed to amplify the U.S. Latino agenda and give attendees the tools they need to attract venture capital, serve the growing Latino real estate and mortgage industry market, and create generational wealth.