High, Stable Returns with Reduced Risk
Comparing rates of return among investment alternatives without evaluating risk is not unlike buying a car based on the colour without checking the engine’s performance. Unity Investments offers returns to investors which, when compared to any alternative on a risk-adjusted basis, are very hard to beat. The following points provide an outline for Unity's risk management abilities in terms of Financial, Operational and Regulatory / Compliance Risk:
Reduced Financial Risk
Several key considerations underscore our ability to reduce your financial risk when investing with Unity Investments.
1. Direct-To-Project financing - Our “Direct-to-Project” financing model is a critical underpinning of our value to investors. Our financial strength, performance track record and strategic alliances allow us to securitize and sell investments without reliance on the proceeds of an offering to cover any aspect of our operating costs. By ensuring that the maximum investor funds flow directly to the project they are investing in, overall project budgets and risks are reduced. Unity Investments’ working capital is funded by Unity Builders Group and recovered through residual profits only after all investors have been paid in full. Not one cent of your investment is diverted from the project to cover management fees or operating expenses of any kind as they relate to Unity Investments.
2. UBG "Skin in the Game" - Unity Builders Group commits their own capital in every project before any investor funds and theirs is the last money out of every project. Investors can be assured that UBG would not solicit investors to participate in real estate projects for which the company would not risk its own hard currency. Our current investors appreciate both the philosophical and practical advantages of investing with UBG after they have committed and receiving 100% of their capital and interest before UBG recovers its investment. All of our investors prefer this order of financing flows to those of our competitors who often charge (or retain the right to charge) all or a portion of their profits to the project in priority ranking to their investors.
3. Conservative Leverage - It is not uncommon for investors to encounter private real estate investments featuring returns of 15-20% over investment terms of 2 to 5 years. This is often indicative of very high ratio financing where investors commit funds exceeding 100% of the current value of the underlying asset. Unity Investments' will generally accept subscriptions from investors for 70% - 85% of the current value of a property on which it intends to build a project. This helps ensure investors are fully secured with 118% - 143% asset value coverage.
Reduced Project Risk
Project Risk (or Operational Risk) involves more qualitative analysis than quantitative but is equally important to assessing overall investment risk. These 3 considerations are among the most critical in understanding how Unity Investments represents lower risk to investors:
1. Build-Out phase only - Unity raises money for projects involving land which has already been zoned and serviced. Because of this, much of the timing and political risk associated with the planning and approvals phases of real estate development is substantially reduced. As a result, both the timeframe of the project and related investment term become forecastable within months instead of years.
2. Market focus - UBG’s homebuilders are concentrated in principal markets within the Province of Alberta. Besides offering the best economic and political conditions of any regional economy in the world, Alberta is the focus of UBG's strategy of balancing geographic diversity, broad market segmentation and local market knowledge to secure its place as one of the leading homebuilding companies in Western Canada. UBG's long-established presence in the Calgary, Edmonton and Canmore markets means UBG managers are highly attuned to both positive and negative changes in their markets and better able to limit downside or capture upside as a result.
3. Management experience - The executive, finance, operations and project management experience represented among the entire UBG team is significant. Among all homebuilding companies within Unity Builders Group, the ability to complete projects successfully is clearly in evidence. Although it's hard to quantify, that talent pool and the expanding track record it represents is one of the most important influences in reducing investor risk.
Reduced Regulatory / Compliance Risk
Many private real estate investment companies, including Unity Investments, offer investments which are detailed through private Offering Memoranda. This method is much more cost effective than developing a complete investment prospectus which is generally subject to more rigorous disclosure and regulatory requirements. Securities regulators make this concession based on the requirement that issuers, like Unity Investments, ensure their investors are individually qualified to understand and assume the risks involved in making the investment. Although this requirement may not be universally met by its competitors, Unity strives to meet or exceed the standards and requirements of all securities jurisdictions in which it operates based on a belief that this level of rigor will benefit both investors and Unity alike in the long run.
1. Top Advisory - From the outset, Unity Investments employs outside expertise in Canadian Securities, Real Estate and Tax law to ensure its investment offerings and processes comply with the letter and the spirit of both provincial and federal legislation.
2. Complete Disclosure - Within its offering and subscription documentation as well as throughout the full cycle of each investment offering Unity Investments applies the philosophy that full disclosure enhances the quality of our investor relationships, even at the expense of quantity. We know our investments are not suitable for everyone, and believe it's in everyone's interest to determine that prior to your investment in any of our offerings.
3. Regulatory and Standards Compliance - Unity Investments strives to meet or exceed all provincial and federal legislation as well as guidelines in an effort to ensure that we execute our fiduciary responsibilities to investors in an exemplary fashion.
4. Best Practices - Unity's Investment Management Group has completed significant training and receives ongoing training to ensure they are fully knowledgeable about our products and the underlying projects. This helps ensure our investors make informed investment decisions with regard to Unity Investments' offerings.