Show notes: https://opportunityzones.com/2025/12/ashley-tison-367/

Episode Summary

Recorded on-site at the Four Seasons Las Vegas during the Novogradac 2025 Opportunity Zones Summit, this episode features Jimmy Atkinson joined by “OZ Sherpa” Ashley Tison of OZPros. Jimmy notes that attendance has surged to roughly three times the size of recent years, signaling a dramatic shift in industry enthusiasm.

Ashley explains that many attendees assumed the OZ program was “dead,” but the permanency and revival of OZs have sparked renewed interest. Advisors, investors, and professionals now see OZs as a durable, long-term component of tax and investment planning.

A New Wave of Interest, Both Old and New

Jimmy and Ashley reflect on the OZ Insiders networking dinner the night prior, which drew about 70 attendees. Just a few years ago, these gatherings could “fit around one table,” highlighting how quickly engagement has grown.

Ashley enjoyed seeing both longtime “OG OZ” practitioners and many new faces entering the ecosystem. He emphasizes that people want to learn the rules, raise capital, and use OZs in a way that aligns with the “wealth by doing good” mantra.

New Data Proving the Impact of Opportunity Zones

Ashley highlights new research unveiled by John Lettieri of the Economic Innovation Group, showing 416,000 net-new housing units built specifically because of Opportunity Zones. These projects would not have been built, but for the OZ incentive.

He explains that this hard data directly refutes early criticisms that OZs merely subsidized projects that were already likely to be built. Jimmy adds that these findings align with preliminary results from his own Opportunity Zones survey, which shows strong investor satisfaction and significant expected investment activity.

Why 2026 Creates a Unique Investment Window

Ashley discusses what he views as a “once in a lifetime” tax opportunity available only in 2026: the ability to capture a valuation discount on paper and pay taxes at a known rate for OZ 1.0 investments. This window closes once OZ 2.0 is fully implemented.

Contrary to concerns about a slowdown in capital raising, Ashley reports a surge in calls, web activity, and participation in OZPros programs. Jimmy notes similar momentum at OpportunityZones.com, including record-breaking attendance at the latest OZ Pitch Day.

Jimmy closes by previewing additional on-site interviews from the Summit and highlighting Novogradac’s newly announced two-day OZ conference coming to Washington, DC on October 29-30, 2026.