ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
RISKS RELATED TO INVESTING IN OUR SECURITIES
Because we generally do not mark to market our property-level mortgages, corporate-level credit facilities and other secured and unsecured debt that are intended to be held to maturity, or our associated interest rate hedges that are intended to be held to maturity, the realizable value of the Company or our assets that are encumbered by debt may be higher or lower than the value used in the calculation of our NAV.
In accordance with our valuation procedures, our property-level mortgages, corporate-level credit facilities and other secured and unsecured debt that are intended to be held to maturity (which for fixed rate debt not subject to interest rate hedges may be the date near maturity at which time the debt will be eligible for prepayment at par for purposes herein), including those subject to interest rates hedges, are valued at par (i.e., at their respective outstanding balances). Because we often utilize interest rate hedges to stabilize interest payments (i.e., to fix all-in interest rates through interest rate swaps or to limit interest rate exposure through interest rate caps) on individual loans, each loan and associated interest rate hedge is treated as one financial instrument, which is valued at par if intended to be held to maturity. This policy of valuing at par applies regardless of whether any given interest rate hedge is considered an asset or liability for GAAP purposes. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we acquire an investment and assume associated in-place debt from the seller that is above or below market, then consistent with how we recognize assumed debt for GAAP purposes when acquiring an asset with pre-existing debt in place, the liabilities used in the determination of our NAV will include the market value of such debt; the associated premium or discount on such debt will then be amortized through loan maturity. As a result of this policy, the realizable value of the Company or our assets that are encumbered by debt used in the calculation of our NAV may be higher or lower than the value that would be derived if such debt instruments were marked to market. For example, if we decide to sell one or more assets, we may re-classify those assets as held-for-sale, which could then have a positive or negative impact on our calculation of NAV to the extent any associated debt is definitively intended to be prepaid. In some cases, such difference may be significant. As of December 31, 2025, we classified all of our debt as intended to be held to
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maturity, and our liability included mark-to-market adjustments for pre-existing debt that we assumed upon acquisition. We currently estimate the fair value of our debt (inclusive of associated interest rate hedges) that was intended to be held to maturity as of December 31, 2025 was $37.2 million lower than the carrying value used for purposes of calculating our NAV (as described above) for such debt in aggregate, meaning that if we used the fair value of our debt rather than the carrying value used for purposes of calculating our NAV (and treated the associated hedge as part of the same financial instrument), our NAV as of December 31, 2025 would have been higher by approximately $37.2 million, or $0.09 per share, not taking into account all of the other items that impact our monthly NAV.
There is no public trading market for the shares of our common stock and we do not anticipate that there will be a public trading market for our shares; therefore, our stockholders’ ability to dispose of their shares will likely be limited to redemption by us. If our stockholders do sell their shares to us, they may receive less than the price they paid.
There is no public market for the shares of our common stock and we currently have no obligation or plans to apply for listing on any public securities market. Therefore, redemption of the shares of our common stock by us will likely be the only way for our stockholders to dispose of their shares. We will redeem shares at a price equal to the transaction price on the last calendar day of the applicable month, and not based on the price at which our stockholders initially purchased their shares. We may redeem our stockholders’ shares if they fail to maintain a minimum balance of $2,000 of shares, even if their failure to meet the minimum balance is caused solely by a decline in our NAV. Since shares of certain classes of our common stock are or were sold at the transaction price plus applicable upfront selling commissions and dealer manager fees, holders of such shares may receive less than the price they paid for their shares upon redemption by us. Subject to limited exceptions, holders of our common stock that have not held their shares for at least one year will be eligible for redemption at 95% of the transaction price on the redemption date, which will inure indirectly to the benefit of our remaining stockholders. As a result of this and the fact that our NAV will fluctuate, holders of our common stock may receive less than the price they paid for their shares upon redemption by us.
Our ability to redeem our stockholders’ shares may be limited. In addition, our board of directors may make exceptions to, modify or suspend our share redemption program at any time.
Our share redemption program contains significant restrictions and limitations. For example, if holders of our common stock do not hold their shares for a minimum of one year, then they will only be eligible for redemption at 95% of the transaction price on the redemption date.
We may redeem fewer shares than have been requested in any particular month to be redeemed under our share redemption program, or none at all, in our discretion at any time. We may redeem fewer shares than have been requested due to lack of readily available funds because of adverse market conditions beyond our control, the need to maintain liquidity for our operations or because we have determined that investing in real property or other illiquid investments is a better use of our capital than redeeming our shares. In addition, the total amount of aggregate redemptions of shares of all classes of our common stock (based on the price at which the shares are redeemed) will be limited for each calendar month to 2% of the aggregate NAV of all classes as of the last calendar day of the previous quarter and for each calendar quarter will be limited to 5% of the aggregate NAV of all classes of shares as of the last calendar day of the previous calendar quarter. With respect to the limitations described above, (i) provided that our share redemption program has been operating and not suspended for the first month of a given quarter and that all properly submitted redemption requests were satisfied, any unused capacity for that month will carry over to the second month and (ii) provided that our share redemption program has been operating and not suspended for the first two months of a given quarter and that all properly submitted redemption requests were satisfied, any unused capacity for those two months will carry over to the third month. In no event will such carry-over capacity permit the redemption of shares with aggregate value (based on the redemption price per share for the month the redemption is effected) in excess of 5% of the combined NAV of all classes of shares as of the last calendar day of the previous calendar quarter (provided that for these purposes redemptions may be measured on a net basis as described in the paragraph below).
We currently measure the foregoing redemption allocations and limitations based on net redemptions during a month or quarter, as applicable. The term “net redemptions” means, during the applicable period, the excess of our share redemptions (capital outflows) over the proceeds from the sale of our shares (capital inflows). For purposes of measuring our redemption capacity pursuant to our share redemption program, proceeds from new subscriptions in a month are included in capital inflows on the first day of the next month because that is the first day on which such stockholders have rights in the Company. Also for purposes of measuring our redemption capacity pursuant to our share redemption program, redemption requests received in a month are included in capital outflows on the last day of such month because that is the last day stockholders have rights in the Company. We record these redemptions in our financial statements as having
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occurred on the first day of the next month following receipt of the redemption request because shares redeemed in a given month are outstanding through the last day of the month. With respect to future periods, our board of directors may choose whether the allocations and limitations will be applied to “gross redemptions,” (i.e., without netting against capital inflows), rather than to net redemptions, which could limit the number of shares redeemed in a given month or quarter despite our receiving a net capital inflow for that month or quarter.
The vast majority of our assets will consist of properties which cannot generally be readily liquidated on short notice without impacting our ability to realize full value upon their disposition. Therefore, we may not always have a sufficient amount of cash to immediately satisfy redemption requests. Our board of directors may make exceptions to, modify or suspend our share redemption program at any time. In addition, limited partners in our Operating Partnership have different redemption rights with respect to partnership interests in the Operating Partnership (“OP Units”) and are treated differently than our stockholders requesting redemption under our share redemption program. Further, we may invest in real estate-related securities and other securities with the primary goal of maintaining liquidity in support of our share redemption program. Any such investments may result in lower returns than an investment in real estate assets, which could adversely impact our ability to pay distributions and our stockholders’ overall return. Further, if redemption requests, in the business judgment of our board of directors, place an undue burden on our liquidity, adversely affect our operations, risk having an adverse impact on stockholders whose shares are not redeemed, or should we otherwise determine that investing our liquid assets in real properties or other investments rather than repurchasing our shares is in the best interests of the Company as a whole, then our board of directors may make exceptions to, modify or suspend our share redemption program if in its reasonable judgment it deems such action to be in our best interest and the best interest of our stockholders. Although our board of directors has the discretion to suspend our share redemption program, our board of directors will not terminate our share redemption program other than in connection with a Liquidity Event (as defined below) which results in our stockholders receiving cash or securities listed on a national securities exchange or where otherwise required by law. Our board of directors may determine that it is in our best interests and the interest of our stockholders to suspend the share redemption program as a result of regulatory changes, changes in law, if our board of directors becomes aware of undisclosed material information that it believes should be publicly disclosed before shares are redeemed, a lack of available funds, a determination that redemption requests are having an adverse effect on our operations or other factors. Upon suspension of our share redemption program, our share redemption program requires our board of directors to consider at least quarterly whether the continued suspension of the program is in our best interest and the best interest of our stockholders; however, we are not required to authorize the recommencement of the share redemption program within any specified period of time and any suspension may be for an indefinite period, which would be tantamount to a termination. As a result, our stockholders’ ability to have their shares redeemed by us may be limited, our shares should be considered as having only limited liquidity and at times may be illiquid.
Our capacity to redeem shares may be further limited if we experience a concentration of investors.
The current limitations of our share redemption program are based, in part, on the number of outstanding shares. Thus, the ability of a single investor, or of a group of investors acting similarly, to redeem all of their shares may be limited if they own a large percentage of our outstanding shares. Similarly, if a single investor, or a group of investors acting in concert or independently, owns a large percentage of our outstanding shares, a significant redemption request by such investor or investors could significantly further limit our ability to satisfy redemption requests of other investors of such classes. Such concentrations could arise in a variety of circumstances. For example, we could sell a large number of our shares to one or more institutional investors. In addition, we may issue a significant number of our shares in connection with an acquisition of another company or a portfolio of properties to a single investor or a group of investors that may request redemption at similar times following the acquisition.
Purchases and redemptions of our common shares will not be made based on the current NAV per share of our common stock.
We are offering shares of our common stock at the transaction price, plus applicable selling commissions and dealer manager fees. The transaction price generally will be equal to the NAV per share of our common stock most recently disclosed by us, however, we may offer shares at a price that we believe reflects the NAV per share of such stock more appropriately than the most recently disclosed NAV per share, including by updating a previously disclosed transaction price, in cases where we believe there has been a material change (positive or negative) to our NAV per share relative to the most recently disclosed NAV per share. The transaction price generally will be based on our most recently disclosed monthly NAV of each class of common stock, which will generally be our prior month’s NAV per share as of the last calendar day of such month (subject to material changes as described above) and will not be based on any public market. Further, our board of directors may amend our NAV procedures from time to time. For example, if our stockholders wish
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to subscribe for shares of our common stock in October, their subscription request must be received in good order at least five business days before November 1. Generally, the offering price per share would equal the transaction price of the applicable class as of the last calendar day of September, plus applicable upfront selling commissions and dealer manager fees. If accepted, their subscription would be effective on the first calendar day of November. Conversely, if our stockholders wish to submit their shares for redemption in October, their redemption request and required documentation must be received in good order by 4:00 p.m. (Eastern time) on the second to last business day of October. If accepted, their shares would be redeemed as of the last calendar day of October and, generally, the redemption price would equal the transaction price of the applicable class as of the last calendar day of September, subject to a 5.0% reduction, for early redemption of shares of our common stock that have not been outstanding for at least one year. In each of these cases, the NAV that is ultimately determined as of the last day of October may be higher or lower than the NAV as of the last day of September used for determining the transaction price. Therefore, the price at which our stockholders purchase shares may be higher than the current NAV per share at the time of sale and the price at which our stockholders redeem shares may be lower than the current NAV per share at the time of redemption.
In order to maintain what we deem to be sufficient liquidity for our share redemption program, we may keep more of our assets in securities, cash, cash equivalents and other short-term investments than we would otherwise like, which would affect returns.
In order to provide liquidity for share redemptions, we intend to, subject to any limitations and requirements relating to our intention to qualify as a REIT, maintain a number of sources of liquidity including (i) cash equivalents (e.g., money market funds), other short-term investments, U.S. government securities, agency securities and liquid real estate-related securities and (ii) one or more borrowing facilities. We may fund redemptions from any available source of funds, including operating cash flows, borrowings, proceeds from our securities offerings and/or sales of our assets. This could adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition, NAV and ability to pay distributions to our stockholders.
Economic events that may cause our stockholders to request that we redeem their shares may materially adversely affect our cash flow and our results of operations and financial condition.
Economic events affecting the U.S. economy, such as the general negative performance of the real estate sector, could cause our stockholders to seek to sell their shares to us pursuant to our share redemption program at a time when such events are adversely affecting the performance of our assets. The redemptions of shares of all classes of our common stock are subject to the 2% and 5% limits (as described above) (subject to potential carry-over capacity). Even if we are able to and determine to satisfy all resulting redemption requests, our cash flow could be materially adversely affected. In addition, if we determine to sell assets to satisfy redemption requests, we may not be able to realize the return on such assets that we may have been able to achieve had we sold at a more favorable time, and our results of operations and financial condition, including, without limitation, the breadth of our portfolio by property type and location, could be materially adversely affected.
A portion of the proceeds raised in our securities offerings is expected to be used to satisfy redemption requests, and such portion of the proceeds may be substantial.
We currently expect to use a portion of the proceeds from our securities offerings to satisfy redemption requests with respect to our share redemption program. Using the proceeds from our securities offerings for redemptions will reduce the net proceeds available to retire debt or acquire additional investments, which may result in reduced liquidity and profitability or restrict our ability to grow our NAV.
Historical returns may be presented over limited timeframes and are inherently limited in their applicability to the future.
In our annual report and in other investor communications, we disclose certain historical NAV and total return information. This information may be presented on a class-by-class basis or on a weighted-average basis across all our classes. The information may go back one month, one quarter, or longer periods. While we believe this historical information is useful, investors should understand that any historical return presentation is inherently limited in its applicability to the future, for a variety of reasons. We may have performed better in certain past time periods than others, and we cannot predict the future performance of the Company specifically or the broader economy and real estate markets more generally. Furthermore, from time to time we may make changes to our portfolio, our investment focus, or structural aspects of the Company that may make past returns less comparable. Over time, we have made changes to the fees and reimbursements we pay to the Advisor (in connection with managing our operations) and the Dealer Manager and participating broker-
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dealers (in connection with our securities offerings). Our share classes have different upfront fees and different class-specific fees that make their returns different from those of other classes and from average returns that may be shown. In some cases, we have changed the names of our share classes and the fees that affect their returns.
Even if we are able to raise substantial funds in our securities offerings, investors in our common stock are subject to the risk that our offerings, business and operating plans may change.
Although we presently intend to operate on a perpetual basis with an ongoing offering and share redemption program, this is not a requirement of our charter. Further, we may in the future consider various liquidity events including, but not limited to, a listing of our common stock on a national securities exchange (or the receipt by our stockholders of securities that are listed on a national securities exchange in exchange for our common stock); the sale, merger, or other transaction of the Company in which our stockholders either receive, or have the option to receive, cash, securities redeemable for cash, and/or securities of a publicly traded company; and the sale of all or substantially all of our assets where our stockholders either receive, or have the option to receive, cash or other consideration (each such event, a “Liquidity Event”) and, given that our investment strategy is focused on a single asset class, it is possible that an opportunity to execute a Liquidity Event could arise. Even if we are able to raise substantial funds in our offerings, if circumstances change such that our board of directors believes it is in the best interest of our stockholders to terminate our offerings or to suspend our share redemption program, in connection with a Liquidity Event or otherwise, we may do so without stockholder approval. Our board of directors may also change our investment objectives, borrowing policies or other corporate policies without stockholder approval. In addition, we may change the way our fees and expenses are incurred and allocated to different classes of stockholders if the tax rules applicable to REITs change such that we could do so without adverse tax consequences. Our board of directors may decide that a Liquidity Event or certain other significant transactions that require stockholder approval are in the best interests of our stockholders. Holders of all classes of our common stock have equal voting rights with respect to such matters and will vote as a single group rather than on a class-by-class basis. Accordingly, investors in our common stock are subject to the risk that our offerings, business and operating plans may change.
Valuations and appraisals of our properties, real estate-related assets and real estate-related liabilities are estimates of value and may not necessarily correspond to realizable value.
The primary component of our NAV is the value of our investments. The valuation methodologies used to value our properties and certain real estate-related assets involve subjective judgments regarding such factors as comparable sales, rental revenue and operating expense data, known contingencies, the capitalization or discount rate, and projections of future rent and expenses based on appropriate analysis. Additionally, appraisals of our properties are in part based on historical transaction data. As a result, valuations and appraisals of our properties, real estate-related assets and real estate-related liabilities are only estimates of current market value. Ultimate realization of the value of an asset or liability depends to a great extent on economic and other conditions beyond our control and the control of the Independent Valuation Advisor and other parties involved in the valuation of our assets and liabilities. Further, these valuations may not necessarily represent the price at which an asset or liability would sell, because market prices of assets and liabilities are best determined by negotiation between a willing buyer and seller. As such, the carrying value of an asset may not reflect the price at which the asset could be sold in the market, and the difference between carrying value and the ultimate sales price could be material. In addition, accurate valuations are more difficult to obtain in times of low transaction volume because there are fewer market transactions that can be considered in the context of the appraisal. Valuations used for determining our NAV also are generally made without consideration of the expenses that would be incurred by us in connection with disposing of assets and liabilities. Therefore, the valuations of our properties, our investments in real estate-related assets and our liabilities may not correspond to the timely realizable value upon a sale of those assets and liabilities. In addition, the value of our interest in any joint venture or partnership that is a minority interest or is restricted as to salability or transferability may reflect or be adjusted for a minority or liquidity discount. In addition to being a month old when share purchases and redemptions take place, our NAV does not currently represent enterprise value and may not accurately reflect the actual prices at which our assets could be liquidated on any given day, the value a third party would pay for all or substantially all of our shares, or the price that our shares would trade at on a national stock exchange. The stock price of shares of a publicly traded REIT may materially differ from the NAV of a non-exchange traded REIT with comparable portfolios. While any changes in the value of our real estate portfolio will ultimately be reflected in future calculations of NAV, there will be no retroactive adjustment in the valuation of such assets or liabilities, the price of our shares of common stock, the price we paid to redeem shares of our common stock or NAV-based fees we paid to the Advisor and the Dealer Manager to the extent such valuations prove to not accurately reflect the true estimate of value and are not a precise measure of realizable value. Because the price our stockholders will pay for shares of our common stock in our securities offerings, and the price at which their shares may be redeemed by us pursuant to our share redemption
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program, are generally based on our estimated NAV per share, our stockholders may pay more than realizable value or receive less than realizable value for their investment.
In order to disclose a monthly NAV, we are reliant on the parties that we engage for that purpose, in particular the Independent Valuation Advisor and the appraisers that we hire to value and appraise our real estate portfolio.
In order to disclose a monthly NAV, our board of directors, including a majority of our independent directors, has adopted valuation procedures that contain a comprehensive set of methodologies to be used in connection with the calculation of our NAV, including the engagement of independent third parties such as the Independent Valuation Advisor, to value our real estate portfolio on a monthly basis, and independent appraisal firms, to provide periodic appraisals with respect to our properties. We have also engaged a firm to act as the NAV Accountant and may engage other independent third parties or our Advisor to value other assets or liabilities. Although our board of directors, with the assistance of the Advisor, oversees all of these parties and the reasonableness of their work product, we will not independently verify our NAV or the components thereof, such as the appraised values of our properties. Our management’s assessment of the market values of our properties may also differ from the appraised values of our properties as determined by the Independent Valuation Advisor. If the parties engaged by us to determine our monthly NAV are unable or unwilling to perform their obligations to us, our NAV could be inaccurate or unavailable, and we could decide to suspend any ongoing securities offering and our share redemption program.
Our NAV is not subject to GAAP, is not independently audited and involves subjective judgments by the Independent Valuation Advisor and other parties involved in valuing our assets and liabilities.
Our valuation procedures and our NAV are not subject to GAAP and are not subject to independent audit. Additionally, we are dependent on our Advisor to be reasonably aware of material events specific to our properties (such as tenant disputes, damage, litigation and environmental issues) that may cause the value of a property to change materially and to promptly notify the Independent Valuation Advisor so that the information may be reflected in our real estate portfolio valuation. In addition, the implementation and coordination of our valuation procedures include certain subjective judgments of our Advisor, such as whether the Independent Valuation Advisor should be notified of events specific to our properties that could affect their valuations, as well as of the Independent Valuation Advisor and other parties we engage, as to whether adjustments to asset and liability valuations are appropriate. Accordingly, our stockholders must rely entirely on our board of directors to adopt appropriate valuation procedures and on the Independent Valuation Advisor and other parties we engage in order to arrive at our NAV, which may not correspond to realizable value upon a sale of our assets.
No rule or regulation requires that we calculate our NAV in a certain way, and our board of directors, including a majority of our independent directors, may adopt changes to the valuation procedures.
There are no existing rules or regulatory bodies that specifically govern the manner in which we calculate our NAV. As a result, it is important that our stockholders pay particular attention to the specific methodologies and assumptions we will use to calculate our NAV. Other peer REITs may use different methodologies or assumptions to determine their NAV. In addition, each year our board of directors, including a majority of our independent directors, will review the appropriateness of our valuation procedures and may, at any time, adopt changes to the valuation procedures. If we acquire real property assets as a portfolio, we may pay a premium over the amount that we would pay for the assets individually. See our valuation procedures, filed as Exhibit 99.2 to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, for more details regarding our valuation methodologies, assumptions and procedures.
Our NAV per share may suddenly change if the valuations of our properties materially change from prior valuations or the actual operating results or observed market transactions materially differ from what we originally budgeted.
It is possible that the annual appraisals of our properties may not be spread evenly throughout the year and may differ from the most recent monthly valuation. As such, when these appraisals are reflected in our Independent Valuation Advisor’s valuation of our real estate portfolio, there may be a sudden change in our NAV per share for each class of our common stock. Property valuation changes can occur for a variety of reasons, such as local real estate market conditions, market lease assumptions, rotation of different third-party appraisal firms, the financial condition of our customers, or leasing activity. For example, due to rapidly changing market conditions, such as tenant demand and resulting rental rates, the valuation of the underlying properties correspondingly may change suddenly. Such a valuation change can be particularly significant when closer to a lease expiration, especially for single tenant buildings or where an individual tenant occupies a large portion of a building. We will be at the greatest risk of these valuation changes during periods in which we have a large number of lease expirations as well as when the lease of a significant tenant is closer to expiration. Similarly, if a
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tenant will have an option in the future to purchase one of our properties from us at a price that is less than the current valuation of the property, then if the value of the property exceeds the option price, the valuation will be expected to decline and begin to approach the purchase price as the date of the option approaches. In addition, actual operating results or observed market transactions may differ from what we originally budgeted, which may cause a sudden increase or decrease in the NAV per share amounts. We will accrue estimated revenues and expenses on a monthly basis based on actual leases and expenses in that month. On a periodic basis, we will adjust the revenues and expense accruals we estimated to reflect the revenues and expenses actually earned and incurred. We will not retroactively adjust the NAV per share of each class for any adjustments. Therefore, because actual results from operations may be better or worse than what we previously budgeted, the adjustment to reflect actual operating results may cause the NAV per share for each class of our common stock to increase or decrease.
New acquisitions may be valued for purposes of our NAV at less than what we pay for them, which would dilute our NAV.
Pursuant to our valuation procedures, the acquisition price of newly acquired properties will serve as the basis for our appraised value for the year of acquisition, and thereafter will be part of the rotating appraisal cycle such that they are appraised at least every calendar year. This is true whether the acquisition is funded with cash, equity or a combination thereof. However, the Independent Valuation Advisor always has the ability to adjust property valuations for purposes of our NAV from the most recent appraised value. Similarly, if the Independent Valuation Advisor believes that the purchase price for a recent acquisition does not reflect the current value of the property, the Independent Valuation Advisor has the ability to adjust the valuation for purposes of our NAV downwards immediately after acquisition. Even if the Independent Valuation Advisor does not adjust the valuation downwards immediately following the acquisition, when we obtain an appraisal on the property, it may not appraise at a value equal to the purchase price. Accordingly, the value of a new acquisition as established under our valuation procedures could be less than what we pay for it, which could negatively affect our NAV. Large portfolio acquisitions, in particular, may require a “portfolio premium” to be paid by us in order to be a competitive bidder, and this “portfolio premium” may not be taken into consideration in calculating our NAV. In addition, acquisition expenses we incur in connection with new acquisitions will negatively impact our NAV. We may make acquisitions (with cash or equity) of any size without stockholder approval, and such acquisitions may be dilutive to our NAV.
The NAV per share that we publish may not necessarily reflect changes in our NAV that are not immediately quantifiable.
From time to time, we may experience events with respect to our investments that may have a material impact on our NAV. For example, and not by way of limitation, changes in governmental rules, regulations and fiscal policies, environmental legislation, natural disasters, pandemics, terrorism, war, social unrest, civil disturbances and major disturbances in financial markets may cause the value of a property to change materially. The NAV per share of each class of our common stock as published on any given month may not reflect such extraordinary events to the extent that their financial impact is not immediately quantifiable. As a result, the NAV per share that we publish may not necessarily reflect changes in our NAV that are not immediately quantifiable, and the NAV per share of each class published after the announcement of a material event may differ significantly from our actual NAV per share for such class until such time as the financial impact is quantified and our NAV is appropriately adjusted in accordance with our valuation procedures. The resulting potential disparity in our NAV may inure to the benefit of redeeming stockholders or non-redeeming stockholders and new purchasers of our common stock, depending on whether our published NAV per share for such class is overstated or understated.
The realizable value of specific properties may change before the value is adjusted by the Independent Valuation Advisor and reflected in the calculation of our NAV.
Our valuation procedures generally provide that the Independent Valuation Advisor will adjust a real property’s valuation, as necessary, based on known events that have a material impact on the most recent value (adjustments for non-material events may also be made). We are dependent on our Advisor to be reasonably aware of material events specific to our properties (such as lease expirations, customer disputes, damage, litigation and environmental issues, as well as positive events such as new lease agreements) that may cause the value of a property to change materially and to promptly notify the Independent Valuation Advisor so that the information may be reflected in our real estate portfolio valuation. Events may transpire that, for a period of time, are unknown to us or the Independent Valuation Advisor that may affect the value of a property, and until such information becomes known and is processed, the value of such asset may differ from the value used to determine our NAV. In addition, although we may have information that suggests a change in value of a
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property may have occurred, there may be a delay in the resulting change in value being reflected in our NAV until such information is appropriately reviewed, verified and processed. For example, we may receive an unsolicited offer from an unrelated third party to purchase one of our assets at a price that is materially different than the price included in our NAV. Or, we may be aware of a new lease, lease expiry, or entering into a contract for capital expenditure. Where possible, adjustments generally will be made based on events evidenced by proper final documentation. It is possible that an adjustment to the valuation of a property may occur prior to final documentation if the Independent Valuation Advisor determines that events warrant adjustments to certain assumptions (including probability of occurrence) that materially affect value. However, to the extent that an event has not yet become final based on proper documentation, its impact on the value of the applicable property may not be reflected (or may be only partially reflected) in the calculation of our NAV.
Our NAV and the NAV of our stockholders’ shares may be diluted in connection with future securities offerings.
In connection with our securities offerings, we incur fees and expenses, which decrease the amount of cash we have available for operations and new investments. In addition, because the prices of shares sold in our securities offerings will be based on our monthly NAV per share, our securities offerings may be dilutive if our NAV procedures do not fully capture the value of our shares and/or we do not utilize the proceeds accretively.
In the future, we may conduct other offerings of common stock (whether existing or new classes), preferred stock, debt securities or of interests in the Operating Partnership. We may also amend the terms of our existing securities offerings. We may structure or amend such offerings to attract institutional investors or other sources of capital. The costs of our securities offerings may negatively impact our ability to pay distributions and our stockholders’ overall return.
Interest rate changes may cause volatility in our monthly NAV.
In accordance with our valuation procedures, we generally will use the fair value of our assets and liabilities related to assets held for sale, if any, to determine our monthly NAV. The fair value of certain of our assets and such liabilities may be very sensitive to interest rate changes, such as fixed rate borrowings and interest rate hedges that are not intended to be held to maturity. As a result, changes in projected forward interest rates may cause volatility in our monthly NAV.
Stockholders will not have the benefit of an independent due diligence review in connection with our securities offerings, which increases the risk of their investment.
Because the Advisor and the Dealer Manager are affiliates of, or otherwise related to, the Sponsor, stockholders will not have the benefit of an independent due diligence review and investigation of the type normally performed by an independent underwriter in connection with a securities offering. This lack of an independent due diligence review and investigation increases the risk of the stockholders’ investment.
The performance component of the advisory fee is calculated on the basis of the overall investment return provided to holders of Fund Interests over a calendar year, so it may not be consistent with the return on our stockholders’ shares.
The performance component of the advisory fee is calculated on the basis of the overall investment return provided to holders of Fund Interests (i.e., our outstanding shares and OP Units held by third parties) in any calendar year such that the Special Unit Holder, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of our Advisor, will receive a performance component of the advisory fee equal to the lesser of (1) 12.5% of (a) the annual total return amount less (b) any loss carryforward, and (2) the amount equal to (x) the annual total return amount, less (y) any loss carryforward, less (z) the amount needed to achieve an annual total return amount equal to 5.0% of the NAV per Fund Interest at the beginning of such year (the “Hurdle Amount”). Therefore, if the annual total return amount exceeds the Hurdle Amount plus the amount of any loss carryforward, then the Special Unit Holder will receive a performance component equal to 100% of such excess, but limited to 12.5% of the annual total return amount that is in excess of the loss carryforward. The foregoing calculations are performed based on the weighted-average number of outstanding Fund Interests during the year and the weighted-average total return per Fund Interest. The “annual total return amount” referred to above means all distributions paid or accrued per Fund Interest plus any change in NAV per Fund Interest since the end of the prior calendar year, adjusted to exclude the negative impact on annual total return resulting from our payment or obligation to pay, or distribute, as applicable, the performance component of the advisory fee as well as ongoing distribution fees (i.e., our ongoing class-specific fees). If the performance component is being calculated with respect to a year in which we complete a Liquidity Event (if any), for purposes of determining the “annual total return amount,” the change in NAV per Fund Interest will be deemed to equal the difference between the NAV per Fund Interest as of the end of the prior calendar year and the value per Fund Interest determined in connection with such Liquidity Event. The “loss carryforward” referred to above will track any negative
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annual total return amounts from prior years and offset the positive annual total return amount for purposes of the calculation of the performance component of the advisory fee. Therefore, payment of the performance component of the advisory fee (1) is contingent upon the overall return to the holders of Fund Interests exceeding the Hurdle Amount plus the amount of any loss carryforward, (2) will vary in amount based on our actual performance and (3) cannot, in and of itself, cause the overall return to the holders of Fund Interests for the year to be reduced below 5.0%. In addition, if the performance component of the advisory fee is earned for any given year, the Advisor and the Special Unit Holder will not be obligated to return any portion of the advisory fees based on our subsequent performance. We completed the 2025 calendar year with a cumulative loss carryforward that will apply to future performance participation allocations. The cumulative loss carryforward as of December 31, 2025 is approximately $0.35 per Fund Interest, which takes into account a $1.38 per Fund Interest loss carryforward generated through the 2024 calendar year. Realization of the loss carryforward is contingent on future performance. Even after such offset, future performance participation allocations will be subject to the Hurdle Amount.
As a result of the manner in which the performance component is calculated, as described above, the performance component is not directly tied to the performance of the shares our stockholders purchase, the class of shares they purchase, or the time period during which they own their shares. The performance component may be payable to the Special Unit Holder even if the NAV of a stockholder’s shares at the time the performance component is calculated is below the stockholder’s purchase price, and the thresholds at which increases in NAV count towards the overall return to the holders of Fund Interests are not based on at stockholder’s purchase price. Because of the class-specific allocations of the ongoing distribution fee, which differ among classes, we do not expect the overall return of each class of Fund Interests to ever be the same. However, if and when the performance component of the advisory fee is payable, the expense will be allocated among all holders of Fund Interests ratably according to the NAV of their units or shares, regardless of the different returns achieved by different classes of Fund Interests during the year. Further, our stockholders who redeem their shares during a given year may redeem their shares at a lower NAV per share as a result of an accrual for the estimated performance component of the advisory fee, even if no performance component is ultimately payable to the Special Unit Holder for all or any portion of such calendar year.
The payment of fees and expenses to the Advisor and its affiliates and the Dealer Manager reduces the cash available for distribution and increases the risk that our stockholders will not be able to recover the amount of their investment in our shares.
The Advisor and the Dealer Manager perform services for us, including, among other things, the selection and acquisition of our investments, the management of our assets, the disposition of our assets, the financing of our assets and certain administrative services. We pay the Advisor and its affiliates and the Dealer Manager fees and expense reimbursements for these services, which will reduce the amount of cash available for further investments or distribution to our stockholders.
We will be required to pay substantial compensation to the Advisor and its affiliates or related parties, which may be increased or decreased during our current securities offerings or future offerings by a majority of our board of directors, including a majority of the independent directors.
Subject to limitations in our charter, the fees, compensation, income, expense reimbursements, interest and other payments that we will be required to pay to the Advisor and its affiliates or related parties may increase or decrease during our current securities offerings or future offerings if such change is approved by a majority of our board of directors, including a majority of the independent directors. These payments to the Advisor and its affiliates or related parties will decrease the amount of cash we have available for operations and new investments and could negatively impact our ability to pay distributions and our stockholders’ overall return.
We may have difficulty completely funding our distributions with funds provided by cash flows from operating activities; therefore, we may use cash flows from financing activities, which may include borrowings and net proceeds from shares sold in our securities offerings, proceeds from the issuance of shares under our DRIP, or other sources to fund distributions to our stockholders. The use of these sources to pay distributions and the ultimate repayment of any liabilities incurred could adversely impact our ability to pay distributions in future periods, decrease the amount of cash we have available for operations and new investments and/or potentially impact the value or result in dilution of our stockholders’ investment by creating future liabilities, reducing the return on their investment or otherwise.
Until the proceeds from our securities offerings are fully invested, and from time to time thereafter, we may not generate sufficient cash flows from operating activities, as determined on a GAAP basis, to fully fund distributions to our stockholders. To date, we have funded, and expect to continue to fund, distributions to our stockholders, with cash flows
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from financing activities, which include borrowings (including borrowings secured by our assets), proceeds from the issuance of shares pursuant to our DRIP, proceeds from sales of assets, net proceeds from shares sold in our securities offerings, and from our sale of DST Interests. Our charter does not prohibit our use of such sources to fund distributions. We may be required to fund distributions from a combination of some of these sources if our investments fail to perform as anticipated, if expenses are greater than expected or as a result of numerous other factors. We have not established a cap on the amount of our distributions that may be paid from any of these sources. Using certain of these sources may result in a liability to us, which would require a future repayment. For the year ended December 31, 2025, approximately 44.9% of our total gross distributions were paid from cash flows from operating activities, as determined on a GAAP basis, and 55.1% of our total gross distributions were funded from sources other than cash flows from operating activities, as determined on a GAAP basis; specifically, 40.4% were funded with proceeds from shares issued pursuant to our DRIP and 14.7% were funded with proceeds from financing activities.
The use of the sources described above for distributions and the ultimate repayment of any liabilities incurred, as well as the payment of distributions in excess of our FFO, could adversely impact our ability to pay distributions in future periods, decrease the amount of cash we have available for operations and new investments and reduce our stockholders’ overall return and adversely impact and dilute the value of their investment in shares of our common stock. To the extent distributions in excess of current and accumulated earnings and profits (i) do not exceed a stockholder’s adjusted basis in our stock, such distributions will not be taxable to a stockholder, but rather a stockholder’s adjusted basis in our stock will be reduced; and (ii) exceed a stockholder’s adjusted tax basis in our stock, such distributions will be included in income as long-term capital gain if the stockholder has held its shares for more than one year and otherwise as short-term capital gain.
In addition, the Advisor or its affiliates could choose to receive shares of our common stock or interests in the Operating Partnership in lieu of cash or deferred fees or the repayment of advances to which they are entitled, and the issuance of such securities may dilute our stockholders’ investment in shares of our common stock.
There is very limited liquidity for our shares of common stock. If we do not effect a Liquidity Event, it will be very difficult for our stockholders to have liquidity for their investment in shares of our common stock.
Although we presently intend to operate on a perpetual basis with an ongoing offering and share redemption program, in the future we may also consider various Liquidity Events and, given that our investment strategy is focused on a single asset class, it is possible that an opportunity to execute a Liquidity Event could arise. There can be no assurance that we will ever seek to effect, or be successful in effecting, a Liquidity Event. Our charter does not require us to pursue a Liquidity Event or any transaction to provide liquidity to our stockholders. If we do not effect a Liquidity Event, it will be very difficult for our stockholders to have liquidity for their investment in shares of our common stock other than limited liquidity through any share redemption program.
We currently do not have research analysts reviewing our performance.
We do not have research analysts reviewing our performance or our securities on an ongoing basis. Therefore, we do not have an independent review of our performance and value of our common stock relative to publicly traded companies.
Our investors may be at a greater risk of loss than the Advisor and members of our management team.
We have taken certain actions to increase the stock ownership in the Company by our management team, the Advisor and our directors, including the implementation of certain stock-based awards. The current level of ownership by management may be less than the management teams of other public real estate companies and, as a result, our investors may be at a greater risk of loss than the Advisor and other members of our management, especially as compared to these other companies in which stock ownership by management and directors may be significantly greater.
The availability and timing of cash distributions to our stockholders is uncertain.
We bear all expenses incurred in our operations, which are deducted from cash funds generated by operations prior to computing the amount of cash from operations available for distributions to our stockholders. In addition, there are ongoing distribution fees payable on Class S-PR shares, Class D-PR shares, Class T-R shares and Class D-R shares, which will reduce the amount of cash available for distribution to holders of Class S-PR shares, Class D-PR shares, Class T-R shares and Class D-R shares. Distributions could also be negatively impacted by the failure to deploy available cash on an expeditious basis, the inability to find suitable investments that are not dilutive to distributions, potential poor performance of our investments, an increase in expenses for any reason (including expending funds for redemptions in excess of the proceeds from our DRIP) and due to numerous other factors. Any request by the holders of our OP Units to redeem some
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or all of their OP Units for cash may also impact the amount of cash available for distribution to our stockholders. In addition, our board of directors, in its discretion, may retain any portion of such funds for working capital. There can be no assurance that sufficient cash will be available to make distributions to our stockholders or that the amount of distributions will increase and not decrease over time. Should we fail for any reason to distribute at least 90% of our REIT taxable income (determined without regard to the dividends paid deduction and excluding any net capital gain), we would not qualify for the favorable tax treatment accorded to REITs.
If we internalize our management functions, the percentage of our outstanding shares of common stock owned by our other stockholders could be reduced, we could incur other significant costs associated with being self-managed, and any internalization could have other adverse effects on our business and financial condition.
At some point in the future, we may internalize the functions performed for us by the Advisor. The method by which we could internalize these functions could take many forms. We may hire our own group of executives and other employees or we may acquire the Advisor or its assets, including its existing workforce. Any internalization transaction could result in significant payments to the owners of the Advisor, including in the form of our stock which could reduce the percentage ownership of our then existing stockholders and concentrate ownership in the Sponsor. In addition, there is no assurance that internalizing our management functions will be beneficial to us and our stockholders. For example, we may not realize the perceived benefits because of the costs of being self-managed or we may not be able to properly integrate a new staff of managers and employees or we may not be able to effectively replicate the services provided previously by the Advisor or its affiliates. Internalization transactions have also, in some cases, been the subject of litigation. Even if these claims are without merit, we could be forced to spend significant amounts of money defending claims which would reduce the amount of funds available for us to invest in real estate assets or to pay distributions.
If another investment program, whether sponsored by the Sponsor or otherwise, hires the current executives or key personnel of the Advisor in connection with an internalization transaction or otherwise, or if we were to internalize our management but cannot retain some or all of our current executives or key personnel of the Advisor, our ability to conduct our business may be adversely affected.
We will rely on key personnel of the Advisor to manage our day-to-day operating and acquisition activities. In addition, all of our current executives and other key personnel of the Advisor may provide services to one or more other investment programs, including other public investment programs sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor. These programs or third parties may decide to retain or hire some or all of our current executives and the Advisor’s other key personnel in the future through an internalization transaction or otherwise. If this occurs, we may not be able to retain some or all of our current executives and other key personnel of the Advisor who are most familiar with our business and operations, thereby potentially adversely impacting our business. If we were to effectuate an internalization of the Advisor, we may not be able to retain all of the current executives and the Advisor’s other key personnel or to maintain a relationship with the Sponsor, which also may adversely affect our ability to conduct our business.
We have broad authority to incur debt, and high debt levels could hinder our ability to make distributions and could decrease the value of an investment in shares of our common stock.
Under our charter, we have a limitation on borrowing which precludes us from borrowing in excess of 300% of the value of our net assets, provided that we may exceed this limit if a higher level of borrowing is approved by a majority of our independent directors. High debt levels could cause us to incur higher interest charges, could result in higher debt service obligations, could be accompanied by restrictive covenants, and generally could make us subject to the risks associated with higher leverage. These factors could limit the amount of cash we have available to distribute and could result in a decline in the value of an investment in shares of our common stock.
Our private offering is being conducted in reliance on a private offering exemption from registration under the Securities Act, and if the Company fails to comply with the requirements of such exemption, our stockholders would have the right to rescind their purchase of Shares of our common stock if they so desired.
Shares of our common stock are being offered and sold in reliance on a private offering exemption from registration provided in the Securities Act. If we should fail to comply with the requirements of such exemption, our stockholders would have the right to rescind their purchase of the shares of our common stock if they so desired. It is possible that one or more stockholders seeking rescission would succeed. This might also occur under applicable state securities laws and regulations in states where the shares will be offered without registration or qualification pursuant to a private offering or other exemption. If a number of our stockholders were successful in seeking rescission, we could face severe financial
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demands that would adversely affect the Company as a whole and, thus, the investment in the Company by our remaining stockholders.
RISKS RELATED TO OUR GENERAL BUSINESS OPERATIONS AND OUR CORPORATE STRUCTURE
If we are delayed in finding or unable to find suitable investments, we may not be able to achieve our investment objectives and make distributions to our stockholders.
We could suffer from delays in identifying suitable investments due to, among other factors, competition we face for real property investments from other REITs and institutional investors, as well as from certain other entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor, which may have greater financial resources than we do, may be able to accept more risk than we can and may possess other significant competitive advantages over us, including a lower cost of capital. Our ability to commit to purchase specific assets will also depend, in part, on the amount of capital we have available for investment at a given time, which may be dependent on the success of our capital raising activities, including the pace at which we are able to raise capital. If we are delayed in finding or unable to find suitable investments, we may not be able to achieve our investment objectives, make distributions to our stockholders or continue to fund distributions from sources other than cash flows from operating activities. In addition, such delays in our ability to find suitable investments would increase the length of time that offering proceeds are held in short term liquid investments that are expected to only produce minimal returns.
We anticipate that our investments will continue to be concentrated in the industrial real estate sector and primarily in the largest distribution and logistics markets in the U.S., and our business could be adversely affected by an economic downturn in that sector or in those geographic areas.
We anticipate that our investments will continue to be concentrated in the industrial real estate sector. Such industry concentration may expose us to the risk of economic downturns in this sector, such as downturns that may result from economic uncertainty with respect to imports and international trade or changes to trade agreements, to a greater extent than if our business activities included investing a more significant portion of the net proceeds of our securities offerings in other sectors of the real estate industry; and such market concentrations may expose us to the risk of economic downturns in these areas. For example, changes to domestic and foreign tariff regimes could have a negative impact on the healthy functioning of global supply chains. This may impact ongoing business operations of customers in our portfolio, leading to reduced leasing demand in certain markets and increasing vacancy. Further, the implementation of tariffs may raise the price level of foreign sourced raw, intermediate, and finished goods, lowering aggregated demand across the economy while triggering a hawkish monetary response by the Federal Reserve. A reduction in aggregate demand could reduce rents and slow industrial leasing velocity. Additionally, elevated interest rates to combat inflation could increase interest expense, impacting performance and our ability to borrow.
We also anticipate that our investments will continue to be concentrated primarily in the largest distribution and logistics markets in the U.S. As a result of this geographic concentration, our business is dependent on the economy in these markets generally, and on the respective markets for industrial property demand in particular, which could expose us to greater economic risks than if we were invested in a more geographically diverse portfolio. In addition, if our customers are concentrated in any particular industry, any adverse economic developments in such industry could expose us to additional risks. These concentration risks could negatively impact our operating results and affect our ability to make distributions to our stockholders.
Inflation, changing interest rates or deflation may adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
We are affected by the fiscal and monetary policies of the United States Government and its agencies, including the policies of the Federal Reserve, which regulates the supply of money and credit in the United States. Changes in fiscal and monetary policies are beyond our control and are difficult to predict. Although the Federal Reserve resumed its monetary easing cycle with an aggregate 75 basis point rate reduction in 2025, there can be no assurance that the rate will continue to decrease or that they will not be increased in 2026 and beyond. While lower market rates and increased capital markets liquidity supports commercial real estate property transactions and values, regulated lending institutions remain under significant pressure to adjust their business models to increase capital requirements for direct loans to real estate and thus continue to be constrained in providing capital for commercial real estate properties. In 2025, rising operating costs, such as property insurance and raw material costs for property development and improvements, have further pressured cash flow performance across many real estate property types. Changes in the federal funds rate as well as the other policies of the Federal Reserve affect interest rates, which have a significant impact on our financial condition.
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Future periods of increased inflation and high interest rates could have an adverse impact on our floating rate mortgages, our ability to borrow money, and general and administrative expenses, as these costs could increase at a rate higher than our rental and other revenue. Increases in the costs of owning and operating our properties due to inflation could reduce our net operating income and our NAV to the extent such increases are not reimbursed or paid by our customers. If we are materially impacted by increasing inflation because, for example, inflationary increases in costs are not sufficiently offset by the contractual rent increases and operating expense reimbursement provisions or escalations in the leases with our customers, we may implement measures to conserve cash or preserve liquidity. Such measures could include deferring investments, reducing or suspending the number of shares redeemed under our share redemption program and reducing or suspending distributions we make to our stockholders, which may adversely and materially affect our net operating income and NAV. In addition, due to rising interest rates, we may experience restrictions in our liquidity based on certain financial covenant requirements as well as our inability to refinance maturing debt in part or in full as it comes due depending on rates at such time and higher debt service costs and reduced yields relative to cost of debt. If we are unable to find alternative credit arrangements or other funding in a high interest environment, our business needs may not be adequately met.
In addition, customers and potential customers of our properties may be adversely impacted by inflation and high interest rates, which could negatively impact our customers’ ability to pay rent and demand for our properties. Such adverse impacts on our customers may cause increased vacancies, which may add pressure to lower rents and increase our expenditures for re-leasing. Inflation could also have an adverse effect on consumer spending, which could impact our customers’ operations and, in turn, demand for our properties. Conversely, deflation could lead to downward pressure on rents and other sources of income.
We are dependent on customers for revenue and our inability to lease our properties or to collect rent from our customers will adversely affect our results of operations and returns to our stockholders.
Our revenues from our real property investments are dependent on our ability to lease our real properties and the creditworthiness of our customers and would be adversely affected by the loss of or default by significant customers. Much of our customer base is comprised of non-rated and non-investment grade customers. The success of our real properties depends on the financial stability of such customers. The financial results of our customers can depend on several factors, including but not limited to the general business environment, interest rates, inflation, the availability of credit, taxation and overall consumer confidence. In addition, our ability to increase our revenues and operating income partially depends on steady growth of demand for the products and services offered by the customers located in the assets that we own and manage. A drop in demand, as a result of a slowdown in the U.S. and global economies or otherwise, could result in a reduction in performance of our customers and consequently, adversely affect our results of operations, NAV and returns to our stockholders. If indicators of impairment exist in any of our real properties, for example, we experience negative operating trends such as prolonged vacancies or operating losses, we may not recover some or all of our investment.
Lease payment defaults by customers could impact operating results, causing us to lower our NAV, reduce the amount of distributions to our stockholders, or could force us to find an alternative source of funding to pay any mortgage loan interest or principal, taxes, or other obligations relating to the property. In the event of a customer default, we may also experience delays in enforcing our rights as landlord and may incur substantial costs in protecting our investment and re-leasing our property. If a lease is terminated, the value of the property may be immediately and negatively affected and we may be unable to lease the property for the rent previously received or at all or sell the property without incurring a loss.
As of December 31, 2025, our top five customers represented 15.8% of our total annualized base rent of our portfolio, our top ten customers represented 21.9% of our total annualized base rent of our portfolio and there were no customers that individually represented more than 10.0% of our total annualized base rent of our portfolio. Our results of operations are currently substantially dependent on our top customers, and any downturn in their businesses could have a material adverse effect on our operations. In addition, certain of our properties are occupied by a single customer, and as a result, the success of those properties depends on the financial stability of that customer. Adverse impacts to such customers, businesses or operators, including as a result of changes in market or economic conditions, natural disasters, outbreaks of an infectious disease, pandemic or any other serious public health concern, political events or other factors that may impact the operation of these properties, may have negative effects on our business and financial results. As a result, some of our customers have been, and may in the future be, required to suspend operations at our properties for what could be an extended period of time. Further, if such customers default under their leases, we may not be able to promptly enter into a new lease or operating arrangement for such properties, rental rates or other terms under any new leases or operating arrangement may be less favorable than the terms of the current lease or operating arrangement or we may be required to make capital improvements to such properties for a new customer, any of which could adversely impact our operating results.
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A global economic slowdown or further declines in real estate values could impair our investments and have a significant adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Geopolitical instability, uncertainty with respect to actual and proposed U.S. trade, foreign, economic and other policies, the war between Russia and Ukraine, the conflicts in the Middle East, as well as other global events have created macroeconomic uncertainty at a global level. Sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other countries have caused additional financial market volatility and affected the global economy. Because of interrelationships within the global financial markets, if these issues do not abate, worsen or spread, our business may be adversely affected.
Even though macroeconomic volatility slowed in the U.S. towards the end of 2025, the current macroeconomic environment is characterized by inflation, labor shortages or interruptions, changing interest rates, foreign currency exchange volatility and volatility in global capital markets. Market and economic disruptions have affected, and may in the future affect, consumer confidence levels and spending, bankruptcy rates, levels of incurrence and default on consumer debt and home prices, among other factors. We cannot assure you that market disruptions, including the increased cost of funding for certain governments and financial institutions, will not impact the global economy. The risks associated with our business are more severe during periods of economic slowdown or recession and since such periods are accompanied by declining real estate values, our business could be materially adversely affected.
There continues to be significant uncertainty about the future relationship between the U.S. and other countries with respect to trade policies, treaties and tariffs. Developments relating to tariffs between the U.S. and other countries, the perception that they could occur, or reactionary measures in response thereto, including retaliatory tariffs, legal challenges, or currency manipulation, could have an adverse effect on global economic conditions and the stability of global financial markets, and could significantly reduce global trade and, in particular, trade between the impacted nations and the U.S. Any of these factors could depress economic activity and impact our borrowers and the value of our collateral. Moreover, concerns over the United States’ debt ceiling and budget-deficit have driven downgrades by rating agencies to the U.S. government’s credit rating, which could cause borrowing costs to rise, negatively impacting both the perception of credit risk associated with our debt portfolio and our ability to access the debt markets on favorable terms. Although U.S. lawmakers passed legislation to raise the federal debt ceiling on multiple occasions, the political difficulty in reaching an agreement without repeated crises has undermined market confidence in the stability and predictability of U.S. policymaking. Market conditions may also make it difficult for us to extend the maturity of or refinance our existing indebtedness or to access or obtain new indebtedness with similar terms and any failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on our business.
We believe the risks associated with our business are more severe during periods of economic downturn if these periods are accompanied by declining values in real estate. For example, a prolonged economic downturn could negatively impact our property investments as a result of increased customer delinquencies and/or defaults under our leases, generally lower demand for rentable space, potential oversupply of rentable space leading to increased concessions, and/or tenant improvement expenditures, or reduced rental rates to maintain occupancies. Our operations could be negatively affected to a greater extent if an economic downturn occurs, is prolonged or becomes more severe, which could significantly harm our revenues, results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, business prospects and our ability to make distributions to our stockholders. If the current macroeconomic environment worsens and an economic slowdown or a recession occurs or real estate values continue to decline, our results of operations, financial condition, liquidity and business and our ability to pay dividends to stockholders could be materially and adversely affected.
We are highly dependent on the information systems of Ares and systems failures could significantly disrupt our business, which may, in turn, negatively affect our operating results and our ability to pay distributions.
Our business is highly dependent on communications and information systems of Ares. Any failure or interruption of Ares’ systems could cause delays or other problems in our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our operating results and negatively affect our ability to pay distributions to our stockholders.
Ares’ information systems and technology may not continue to be able to accommodate the growth of our business, and the cost of maintaining the information systems and technology, which is partially allocated to us pursuant to the Advisory Agreement, may increase from its current level. Such a failure to accommodate growth, or an increase in costs related to the information systems and technology, could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
Furthermore, an earthquake, wildfire or other disaster or a disruption in the infrastructure that supports our business, including a disruption involving electronic communications, human resources systems or other services used by us, our Advisor, Ares or third parties with whom we conduct business, could materially disrupt our operations and adversely affect our business and financial results. Although Ares has disaster recovery programs in place, these may not be sufficient to
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mitigate the harm that may result from such a disaster or disruption. In addition, insurance and other safeguards might only partially reimburse us for any losses as a result of such a disaster or disruption, if at all.
We, our Advisor and Ares also rely on third-party service providers for certain aspects of our respective businesses, including for certain information systems, technology and administration of our loan portfolio and compliance matters. Operational risks could increase as third-party service providers increasingly offer mobile and cloud-based software services rather than software services that can be operated within our Advisor’s or Ares’ own data centers, as certain aspects of the security of such technologies may be complex, unpredictable or beyond their control, and any failure by mobile technology or cloud service providers to adequately safeguard their systems and prevent cyber-attacks could disrupt our operations and the operations of our Advisor and Ares and result in misappropriation, corruption or loss of confidential, proprietary or personal information. In addition, such counterparties’ information systems, technology or accounts may be the target of cyber-attacks. Any interruption or deterioration in the performance of these third parties or failures or vulnerabilities of their information systems or technology could impair the quality of our operations and could impact our reputation and adversely affect our business.
Finally, there continues to be significant evolution and developments in the use of artificial intelligence technologies, including generative artificial intelligence. At this time, we cannot fully determine the impact of such evolving technology to our industry or business.
A major public health crisis, pandemic or epidemic could disrupt the U.S. and global economies and industries in which our customers operate and materially and adversely impact us.
A major public health crisis, pandemic or epidemic could impact the U.S. and global economies. Disruptions to commercial activity (such as the imposition of quarantines or travel restrictions) or, more generally, a failure to contain or effectively manage a public health crisis, has, and may in the future, adversely impact our business and operations. Public health crises, pandemics and epidemics have contributed, and could contribute, to adverse impacts on global commercial activity, our properties and our operating results, including through reductions in occupancy and increases in the cost of operation, all of which could disrupt our business and materially adversely impact our financial results.
The impact and effects of any future health crises, pandemics or epidemics will depend on various factors, including how rapidly variants develop, availability, acceptance and effectiveness of vaccines along with related travel advisories, quarantines and restrictions, the recovery time of potentially disrupted supply chains and industries, the impact of labor market interruptions, and the impact of government interventions. Health crises, pandemics or epidemics, and resulting impacts on the financial, economic and capital markets environment, and future developments in these and other areas present uncertainty and risk with respect to our performance and results of operations and ability to pay distributions.
Yields on and safety of deposits may be lower due to the extensive decline in the financial markets.
Until we invest the proceeds of our securities offerings in properties, debt and other investments, we generally plan to hold those funds in permitted investments. Subject to applicable REIT rules, such investments include money market funds, bank money market accounts and CDs or other accounts at third-party depository institutions. Continuous or unusual declines in the financial markets may result in a loss of some or all of these funds. In particular, during times of economic distress, money market funds have experienced intense redemption pressure and have had difficulty satisfying redemption requests. As such, we may not be able to access the cash in our money market investments. In addition, income from these investments is minimal.
Our business is dependent on bank relationships and strain on the banking system may severely impact us. Similarly, the failure of any bank in which we deposit our funds could reduce the amount of cash we have available to pay distributions and make additional investments.
The financial markets have encountered and may in the future encounter volatility associated with concerns about the balance sheets of banks. Our business is dependent on bank relationships and we proactively monitor the financial health of such bank relationships. Strain on the banking system may adversely impact our operations and the economy more broadly, and in turn our cash flow, distributions and NAV.
We will seek to diversify our excess cash and cash equivalents among several banking institutions in an attempt to minimize exposure to any one of these entities. However, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation generally only insures amounts up to $250,000 per depositor per insured bank. It is likely that we will have cash and cash equivalents and
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restricted cash deposited in certain financial institutions substantially in excess of federally insured levels. If any of the banking institutions in which we deposit funds ultimately fails, we may lose our deposits over $250,000. The loss of our deposits could reduce the amount of cash we have available to distribute or invest and could result in a decline in the value of our stockholders’ investment.
Terrorist attacks and other acts of violence, civilian unrest, military conflict, or war may affect the markets in which we operate, our operations and our profitability.
Terrorist attacks and other acts of violence, civilian unrest, military conflict or war may negatively affect our operations and our stockholders’ investment. We may acquire real estate assets located in areas that are susceptible to attack. In addition, any kind of terrorist activity or violent criminal acts, including terrorist acts against public institutions or buildings or modes of public transportation (including airlines, trains or buses) could have a negative effect on our business. These events may directly impact the value of our assets through damage, destruction, loss or increased security costs. Although we may obtain terrorism insurance, we may not be able to obtain sufficient coverage to fund any losses we may incur. Risks associated with potential acts of terrorism could sharply increase the premiums we pay for coverage against property and casualty claims. Further, certain losses resulting from these types of events are uninsurable or not insurable at reasonable costs.
More generally, any terrorist attack, other act of violence or war, including military conflicts, such as the ongoing conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and Israel and Hamas, could result in increased volatility in, or damage to, the worldwide financial markets and economy. Increased economic volatility and trade restrictions could adversely affect our customers’ ability to pay rent on their leases or our ability to borrow money or issue capital stock at acceptable prices and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and ability to pay distributions to our stockholders.
Security incidents or cyber-attacks affecting us, Ares, the Advisor, the Dealer Manager, or Ares or third-party providers could adversely affect our business by causing a disruption to our operations or the operations of the Advisor, the Dealer Manager, our transfer agent or any other party that provides us with services essential to our operations, a compromise or corruption of our confidential, personal or other sensitive information and/or damage to our business relationships or reputation or the business relationships or reputations of the Advisor, the Dealer Manager, our transfer agent or any other party that provides us with essential services, all of which could negatively impact our business, financial condition and operating results.
The efficient operation of our business is dependent on information systems and technology, including computer hardware and software systems, as well as data processing systems and the secure processing, storage and transmission of information, all of which are potentially vulnerable to security incidents and cyber-attacks. These attacks may take the form of an intentional attack or an unintentional event, either of which could involve a third party gaining unauthorized access to our information systems or those of the Advisor, the Dealer Manager, our transfer agent or any other party that provides us with services for purposes of misappropriating assets, stealing confidential information, corrupting data or causing operational disruption. The risk of a security breach or disruption, particularly through cyber-attacks or cyber intrusions, including by computer hackers, nation-states or nation-state affiliated actors and cyber terrorists, has generally increased as the number, intensity and sophistication of attempted attacks and intrusions from around the world have increased. We, along with the Advisor and the Dealer Manager, have been and expect to continue to be the target of fraudulent calls, emails and other forms of potentially malicious or otherwise negatively impacting activities and attempts to gain unauthorized access to confidential, personal or otherwise sensitive information, which are becoming more sophisticated and difficult to detect, particularly as threat actors use artificial intelligence technologies to deploy these attacks. Artificial intelligence tools may also be susceptible to new forms of cyber-attacks, such as prompt injection attacks, which may increase our cybersecurity risks where we implement artificial intelligence technologies in our business. Cybersecurity risks are also exacerbated by the rapidly increasing volume of highly sensitive data, including our proprietary business information and intellectual property, personal information of our Advisor’s employees, our customers and others, and other sensitive information that our Advisor collects, processes and stores in its data centers and on its networks or those of its third-party service providers. Many jurisdictions have also enacted laws requiring companies to notify individuals of data security breaches involving certain types of personal information, with which we and our Advisor must comply in the event of a security incident or cyber-attack.
The result of any security incident or cyber-attack may include disrupted operations, including our, our Advisor’s, our customers’, or third-parties’ operations, misstated or unreliable financial data, fraudulent transfers or requests for transfers of money, liability for stolen assets or improperly accessed information (including personal information), fines or penalties, investigations, increased cybersecurity protection and insurance costs, litigation, or damage to our business relationships
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and reputation, in each case, causing our business and results of operations to suffer or otherwise causing interruptions or malfunctions in our, our Advisor’s employees’, its affiliates’ employees’, our counterparties’ or third parties’ operations. The costs related to cyber-attacks or other security incidents or disruptions may not be fully insured or indemnified by other means. As reliance on technology has increased, so have the risks posed to our information systems, both internal and those provided by Ares and third party service providers.
Ares is dependent on third-party service providers for hosting hardware, software and data processing systems that they do not control. While we rely on the cybersecurity strategy and policies implemented by Ares, which includes the performance of risk assessments on third-party providers, our reliance on Ares and its potential reliance on third-party providers removes certain cybersecurity functions from outside their immediate control, and cyber-attacks on us, our Advisor, Ares or third-party service providers could adversely affect us, our business and our reputation. We cannot guarantee that Ares’ networks and its partners’ networks have not been compromised or that they do not contain exploitable defects or bugs that could result in a breach of or disruption to Ares’ information technology systems or the third-party information technology systems that provide support services. Ares’ ability to monitor these third parties’ information security practices is limited, and they may not have adequate information security measures in place.
Security incidents and cyber-attacks may originate from a wide variety of sources, and while Ares has implemented processes, procedures and internal controls designed to mitigate cybersecurity risks and cyber-attacks, these measures do not guarantee that a security incident or cyber-attack will not occur or that our financial results or operations will not be negatively impacted by such an incident, especially because the techniques of threat actors change frequently and are often not recognized until launched, and may be enhanced by artificial intelligence technologies. Ares relies on industry accepted security measures and technology to securely maintain confidential and proprietary information maintained on their information systems, as well as on policies and procedures to protect against the unauthorized or unlawful disclosure of confidential, personal or other sensitive information. Although Ares takes protective measures and endeavors to strengthen its computer systems, software, technology assets and networks to prevent and address potential security incidents and cyber-attacks, there can be no assurance that any of these measures prove effective. Ares expects to be required to devote increasing levels of funding and resources, which may in part be allocated to us, to comply with evolving cybersecurity and privacy laws and regulations and to continually monitor and enhance its cybersecurity procedures and controls.
Even the most well-protected information, networks, systems and facilities remain potentially vulnerable because the techniques used in such attempted security breaches evolve and generally are not recognized until launched against a target, and may be enhanced by artificial intelligence technologies, and in some cases are designed to not be detected and, in fact, may not be detected. Moreover, our systems, servers and platforms and those of our third party service providers may be vulnerable to computer viruses or physical or electronic break-ins and similar disruptions that our or their security measures may not detect, which could cause system interruptions, website slowdown or unavailability, delays in communication or loss of data. Accordingly, we and our service providers may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate security barriers or other preventative measures, and thus it is impossible for us and our service providers to entirely mitigate this risk. We may need to expend significant resources and make significant capital investment to protect against security breaches or to mitigate the impact of any such breaches. There can be no assurance that we or our third party service providers will be successful in preventing cyber-attacks or successfully mitigate their effects. Cybersecurity risks require continuous and increasing attention and other resources from us to, among other actions, identify and quantify these risks, upgrade and expand our technologies, systems and processes to adequately address such risks. Such attention diverts time and other resources from other activities and there is no assurance that our efforts will be effective.
In addition, cybersecurity is a priority for regulators around the world. State and federal laws and regulations related to cybersecurity compliance continue to evolve and change, which may require substantial investments in new technology, software and personnel, which could affect our profitability. The SEC requires public companies to disclose material cybersecurity incidents on Form 8-K and provide periodic disclosure regarding their cybersecurity risk management, strategy, and governance in annual reports.
With the SEC particularly focused on cybersecurity, we expect increased scrutiny of our, our Advisor’s and Ares’ policies and systems designed to manage cybersecurity risks and related disclosures. We also expect to face increased costs to comply with the new SEC rules, including increased costs for cybersecurity training and management. Many jurisdictions in which we operate have laws and regulations relating to data privacy, cybersecurity and the protection of personal information, including the California Consumer Privacy Act and the New York SHIELD Act. The SEC has also indicated that one of its examination priorities for the Officer of Compliance Inspections and Examinations is to continue to examine cybersecurity procedures and controls, including testing the implementation of these procedures and controls. If we fail to
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comply with the relevant laws and regulations, we could suffer financial loss, a disruption of our business, liability to investors, regulatory intervention or reputational damage.
If we fail to comply with laws, regulations and market standards regarding the privacy, use and security of customer and stockholder information, we may be subject to legal and regulatory actions and our reputation would be harmed, which would materially adversely affect us.
We receive, maintain and store the non-public personal information of our stockholders and certain of our customers. The technology and other controls and processes designed to secure our stockholder and customer information and to prevent, detect and remedy any unauthorized access to that information are designed to obtain reasonable, not absolute, assurance that such information is secure and that any unauthorized access is identified and addressed appropriately. Accordingly, such controls may not have detected, and may in the future fail to prevent or detect, unauthorized access to such non-public personal information. If this information is inappropriately accessed and used by a third party or an employee for illegal purposes, we may be responsible to the affected individual or entity for any losses that may have been incurred as a result of the misappropriation. In such an instance, we may be liable to a governmental authority for fines or penalties associated with a lapse in the integrity and security of non-public personal information, which could materially adversely affect us.
Further, significant actual or potential theft, loss, corruption, exposure, fraudulent use or misuse of investor or other personal information, proprietary business data or other sensitive information, whether by third parties or as a result of malfeasance or otherwise, non-compliance with legal obligations regarding such data or intellectual property or a violation of Ares’ privacy and security policies with respect to such data could result in significant investigation, remediation and other costs, fines, penalties, litigation or regulatory actions against us and significant reputational harm, any of which could harm our business and results of operations.
Our board of directors determines our major policies and operations which increases the uncertainties faced by our stockholders.
Our board of directors determines our major policies, including our policies regarding acquisitions, dispositions, financing, growth, debt capitalization, REIT qualification, listing, redemptions and distributions. Our board of directors may amend or revise these and other policies without providing notice to or obtaining the consent of our stockholders, which could result in investments that are different from those described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and in other filings we make with the SEC from time to time. Under the Maryland General Corporation Law and our charter, our stockholders have a right to vote only on limited matters. Our board of directors’ broad discretion in setting policies and our stockholders’ inability to exert control over those policies increases the uncertainty and risks our stockholders face, especially if our board of directors and our stockholders disagree as to what course of action is in our stockholders’ best interests.
Our board of directors adopted a delegation of authority policy and pursuant to such policy, has established the Combined Industrial Advisors Committee, which is not a committee of our board of directors, but consists of certain of our officers and officers of the Advisor. Our board of directors has delegated to the Combined Industrial Advisors Committee certain responsibilities with respect to certain acquisition, disposition, leasing, capital expenditure and borrowing decisions, which may result in our making riskier investments and which could adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition, NAV and cash flows.
Our board of directors has delegated to the Combined Industrial Advisors Committee (the “CIAC”) the authority to execute certain transactions and make certain decisions on our behalf. The CIAC has the authority to approve certain transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions and leases, as well as to make decisions with respect to capital expenditures and borrowings, in each case so long as such investments and decisions meet certain board-approved parameters (that include limitations regarding the dollar amount of the transactions, among others) and are consistent with the requirements of our charter. There can be no assurance that the CIAC will be successful in applying any strategy or discretionary approach to our investment activities pursuant to this delegation of authority. Our board of directors will review the investment decisions made pursuant to this delegation of authority periodically. The prior approval of our board of directors or a committee of our independent directors will be required as set forth in our charter (including for transactions with affiliates of the Advisor) or for transactions or decisions that are outside of the board-approved parameters placed on this delegation of authority. Transactions entered into and decisions made by the CIAC on our behalf may be costly, difficult or impossible to unwind if our board of directors later reviews them and determines that they should not have been entered into or made.
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Tax protection agreements could limit our ability to sell or otherwise dispose of property contributed to the Operating Partnership.
In connection with a contribution of property to the Operating Partnership, the Operating Partnership may enter into a “tax protection agreement” with the contributor of such property. Such an agreement typically would provide that if we dispose of any interest in the contributed property in a taxable transaction within a certain time period, subject to certain exceptions, we may be required to indemnify the contributor for its tax liabilities attributable to recognition of the built-in gain that existed with respect to such property interests, as well as the tax liabilities incurred as a result of such tax protection payment. As a result, it may be economically prohibitive for us to sell a contributed property subject to such an agreement even though such sale otherwise would be economically advantageous. While there may be ways to mitigate or avoid incurring an indemnification obligation under a tax protection agreement on the disposition of a property, there can be no assurances that such strategies will be implemented or successful.
Tax protection agreements may require the Operating Partnership to maintain certain debt levels that otherwise would not be required to operate our business.
Under a tax protection agreement, the Operating Partnership may be required to maintain a certain minimum amount of non-recourse debt, provide the contributor of property the opportunity to guarantee debt or provide the contributor the opportunity to enter into a “deficit restoration obligation,” in each case for the purpose of maintaining or increasing the contributor’s adjusted tax basis in his or her partnership interest in the Operating Partnership. If we fail to maintain such debt or make such opportunities available, we may be required to indemnify such contributor for the contributor’s tax liability resulting from such failure and the tax liabilities incurred as a result of such tax protection payment. These obligations may require the Operating Partnership to maintain more or different indebtedness than we would otherwise require for our business.
Certain provisions in the partnership agreement of the Operating Partnership may delay, defer or prevent an unsolicited acquisition of us or a change of our control.
Provisions in the partnership agreement of the Operating Partnership may delay, defer or prevent an unsolicited acquisition of us or a change of our control. These provisions include, among others:
• redemption rights of qualifying parties;
• a requirement that we may not be removed as the general partner of the operating partnership without our consent;
• transfer restrictions on our OP Units;
• our ability, as general partner, in some cases, to amend the partnership agreement without the consent of the limited partners; and
• the right of the limited partners to consent to transfers of the general partnership interest and mergers under specified circumstances.
These provisions could discourage third parties from making proposals involving an unsolicited acquisition of us or a change of our control, although some stockholders might consider such proposals, if made, desirable. Our charter and bylaws, the limited partnership agreement of the Operating Partnership and Maryland law also contain other provisions that may delay, defer or prevent a transaction or a change of control of us that might involve a premium price for our common stock or that our stockholders otherwise might believe to be in their best interests.
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Our UPREIT structure may result in potential conflicts of interest with limited partners in the Operating Partnership whose interests may not be aligned with those of our stockholders.
Limited partners in the Operating Partnership have the right to vote on certain amendments to the twelfth amended and restated limited operating partnership agreement for the Operating Partnership, or the “Operating Partnership Agreement,” as well as on certain other matters. Persons holding such voting rights may exercise them in a manner that conflicts with our stockholders’ interests. In addition, conflicts of interest may exist or could arise in the future as a result of the relationships between us and our affiliates, on the one hand, and the Operating Partnership or any partner thereof, on the other hand. Our directors and officers have duties to the Company and our stockholders under Maryland law in connection with their management of the Company.
We may acquire co-ownership interests in property that are subject to certain co-ownership agreements which may have an adverse effect on our results of operations, relative to if the co-ownership agreements did not exist.
We may acquire co-ownership interests, especially in connection with the Operating Partnership’s potential private placements, such as tenancy-in-common interests in property, interests in DSTs that own property and/or similar interests, which are subject to certain co-ownership agreements. The co-ownership agreements may limit our ability to encumber, lease, or dispose of our co-ownership interest. Such agreements could affect our ability to turn our investments into cash and could affect cash available for distributions to our stockholders. The co-ownership agreements could also impair our ability to take actions that would otherwise be in the best interest of our stockholders and, therefore, may have an adverse effect on our results of operations, relative to if the co-ownership agreements did not exist.
The Operating Partnership’s private placements of DST Interests under our DST Program could cause our leverage ratio to increase or subject us to liabilities from litigation or otherwise.
We, through the Operating Partnership, have a program to raise capital in private placements exempt from registration under Section 506(b) of the Securities Act through the sale of DST Interests in specific DSTs holding DST Properties. These interests may serve as replacement properties for investors seeking to complete Section 1031 Exchanges. All of the properties, the interests in which are sold to investors pursuant to such private placements will be leased-back by the Operating Partnership or a wholly owned subsidiary thereof, as applicable, with such lease fully guaranteed by the Operating Partnership, although there can be no assurance that the Operating Partnership can or will fulfill these guarantee obligations. Additionally, the Operating Partnership will be given a fair market value purchase option (the “FMV Option”) giving it the right, but not the obligation, to acquire the DST Interests from the investors at a later time in exchange for OP Units, cash or a combination of OP Units and cash. Specifically, if the Operating Partnership exercises the FMV Option with respect to a DST, then the Operating Partnership may grant investors who own the DST Interests the option to (i) accept OP Units in exchange for their DST Interests (the “OP Unit Election”), (ii) sell their DST Interests to the Operating Partnership for cash (the “Cash Election”), or (iii) dispose of their DST Interests using a combination of the OP Unit Election and the Cash Election, in which case the Operating Partnership will make at least 15% of the total consideration payable with respect to the exercise of the FMV Option available in cash to fund payments to holders of DST Interests making the Cash Election with respect to all or a portion of their DST Interests. In the event the Operating Partnership elects not to exercise the FMV Option our leverage ratio could increase based on remaining master lease obligations. This may result in both increased costs to us and a negative impact on our overall debt covenants. In addition, in the event the Operating Partnership elects not to exercise the FMV Option and the DST Property is sold to a third party, the master lease will terminate, triggering an obligation on the part of a subsidiary of the Operating Partnership, as master tenant, to pay to the DST an amount equal to the positive difference, if any, between the fair market value of the DST Property with the master lease in place as if such automatic termination had not occurred, and the gross purchase price to be paid by the third party buyer to the DST to acquire the DST Property. However, if the gross purchase price for the DST Property exceeds the fair market value of the DST Property subject to the master lease, no payment to the DST by the master tenant will be required. Further, investors who acquired DST Interests pursuant to such private placements may have been seeking certain tax benefits that depend on the interpretation of, and compliance with, U.S. federal and state income tax laws and regulations. As the general partner of the Operating Partnership, we may become subject to liability, from litigation or otherwise, as a result of such transactions, including in the event an investor fails to qualify for any desired tax benefits.
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The Operating Partnership’s private placements of DST Interests under our DST Program will not shield us from risks related to the performance of the real properties held through such structures.
Pursuant to the DST Program, the Operating Partnership intends to place certain of its existing real properties and/or acquire new properties to place into specific DSTs and then sell DST Interests, via its taxable REIT subsidiary (“TRS”), to third-party investors. We will hold long-term leasehold interests in the property pursuant to master leases that are fully guaranteed by the Operating Partnership, while the third-party investors indirectly hold some or all of the interests in the real estate. There can be no assurance that the Operating Partnership can or will fulfill these guarantee obligations. Although we will hold a FMV Option to reacquire the real estate through a purchase of DST Interests, the purchase price will be based on the then-current fair market value of the third-party investor’s interest in the real estate, which will be greatly impacted by the rental terms fixed by the long-term master lease. Under the lease, we are responsible for subleasing the property to occupying customers until the earlier of the expiration of the master lease or our exercise of the FMV Option, which means that we bear the risk that the underlying cash flow from the property and all capital expenditures may be less than the master lease payments at such time. Therefore, even though we will no longer own the underlying real estate while it is held by the DST, because of the fixed terms of the long-term master lease guaranteed by the Operating Partnership, negative performance by the underlying properties could affect cash available for distributions to our stockholders and will likely have an adverse effect on our results of operations and NAV. In addition, if we determine to exercise the FMV Option and the underlying cash flow at the property owned by the DST is or is anticipated to be lower than the master lease rent payments, then the presence of the master lease may cause the property to have a higher fair market value than would otherwise be the case if the property had not been sold subject to the master lease.
We may own DST Interests in DSTs owning real property that will be subject to the agreements under our DST Program, which may have an adverse effect on our results of operations, relative to if the DST Program agreements did not exist.
In connection with our DST Program, we may own DST Interests in DSTs owning real property that are subject to the terms of the agreements provided by our DST Program. The DST Program agreements may limit our ability to encumber, lease or dispose of our DST Interests. Such agreements could affect our ability to turn our DST Interests into cash and could affect cash available for distributions to our stockholders. The DST Program agreements used in connection with the DST Program could also impair our ability to take actions that would otherwise be in the best interests of our stockholders and, therefore, may have an adverse effect on our results of operations and NAV, relative to if the DST Program agreements did not exist.
Properties that are placed into the DST Program and later reacquired may be less liquid than other assets, which could impair our ability to utilize cash proceeds from sales of such properties for other purposes such as paying down debt, distributions, funding redemptions or making additional investments.
Properties that are placed into the DST Program (each, a “DST Program Asset”) later may be reacquired through exercise of the FMV Option granted to our Operating Partnership. In such cases, the investors who become limited partners in the Operating Partnership (the “DST Investors”) generally remain subject to tax on their share of built-in gain in the applicable DST Program Asset if such asset subsequently is sold in a taxable transaction. Although we are not contractually obligated to do so, generally we have sought to dispose of DST Program Assets in tax-deferred transactions, such as a Section 1031 Exchange in order to mitigate or avoid having our DST Investors incur tax on such disposition. Further, if we undertake such a Section 1031 Exchange, the applicable DST Investors’ built-in gain will carry over to any replacement property acquired in such exchange. Although there may be ways to mitigate or avoid triggering the DST Investors’ built-in gain on a disposition of a DST Program Asset, there can be no assurances that such strategies will be implemented or successful. As a result, placing properties into the DST Program may limit our ability to access liquidity from such properties or replacement properties through sale without triggering taxes to DST Investors attributable to their built-in gain. Such reduced liquidity could impair our ability to utilize cash proceeds from sales for other purposes such as paying down debt, paying distributions, funding redemptions or making additional investments. If we are unable to fund redemptions, our board of directors may determine to suspend our share redemption program until we are able to generate sufficient liquidity to satisfy redemption requests.
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Investors who use DST Investor Loans to acquire DST Interests as part of the DST Program may default on such loans.
As part of the DST Program, a subsidiary of ours will provide DST Program Loans to certain DST Investors who acquire DST Interests. DST Program Loans will be secured by the DST Investor’s DST Interests acquired using the DST Program Loan, and will be non-recourse to the borrowing DST Investor subject to commercially customary recourse carveouts. We may suffer losses if the fair market value of the asset underlying the DST Interests acquired by the DST Investor declines after the DST Investor’s borrowing with respect to a DST Program Loan, or if there is otherwise a default on a DST Program Loan.
If we invest in a limited partnership as a general partner, we could be responsible for all liabilities of such partnership.
We may invest in limited partnership entities through joint ventures or other co-ownership arrangements, in which we acquire all or a portion of our interest in such partnership as a general partner. Such general partner status could expose us to all the liabilities of such partnership. Additionally, we may take a non-managing general partner interest in the limited partnership, which would limit our rights of management or control over the operation of the partnership but would still make us potentially liable for all liabilities of the partnership. Therefore, we may be held responsible for all of the liabilities of an entity in which we do not have full management rights or control, and our liability may be greater than the amount or value of our initial, or then current, investment in the entity.
Cash redemptions to holders of OP Units will reduce cash available for distribution to our stockholders or to honor their redemption requests under our share redemption program.
The holders of OP Units (other than us and including both third parties and affiliates of the Sponsor) generally have the right to cause the Operating Partnership to redeem all or a portion of their OP Units for, at our sole discretion, shares of our common stock, cash, or a combination of both. Our election to redeem OP Units for cash may reduce funds available for distribution to our stockholders or to honor our stockholders’ redemption requests under our share redemption program.
We may be limited or restricted in engaging in Section 1031 Exchanges.
We may dispose of properties in transactions intended to qualify as Section 1031 Exchanges. Such Section 1031 Exchanges are intended to result in the deferral of otherwise taxable gain for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The failure of any such transaction to qualify as a Section 1031 Exchange could require us to pay U.S. federal income tax, possibly including the 100% prohibited transaction tax, depending on the facts and circumstances surrounding the particular transaction.
Maryland law and our organizational documents limit our stockholders’ rights to bring claims against our officers and directors.
Maryland law provides that a director will not have any liability as a director so long as he or she performs his or her duties in good faith, in a manner he or she reasonably believes to be in our best interests, and with the care that an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would use under similar circumstances. In addition, our charter provides that, subject to the applicable limitations set forth therein or under Maryland law, no director or officer will be liable to us or our stockholders for monetary damages. Our charter also provides that we will generally indemnify and advance expenses to our directors, our officers, the Advisor and its affiliates for losses they may incur by reason of their service in those capacities unless (i) their act or omission was material to the matter giving rise to the proceeding and was committed in bad faith or was the result of active and deliberate dishonesty, (ii) they actually received an improper personal benefit in money, property or services or, (iii) in the case of any criminal proceeding, they had reasonable cause to believe the act or omission was unlawful. Moreover, we have entered into separate indemnification agreements with each of our officers and directors. As a result, we and our stockholders have more limited rights against these persons than might otherwise exist under common law.
In addition, we are obligated to fund the defense costs incurred by these persons in some cases. However, our charter provides that we may not indemnify our directors, the Advisor and its affiliates for any liability or loss suffered by them or hold our directors, the Advisor and its affiliates harmless for any liability or loss suffered by us unless they have determined that the course of conduct that caused the loss or liability was in our best interests, they were acting on our behalf or performing services for us, the liability or loss was not the result of negligence or misconduct by our non-independent directors, the Advisor and its affiliates or gross negligence or willful misconduct by our independent directors, and the indemnification or agreement to hold harmless is recoverable only out of our net assets or the proceeds of insurance and not from our stockholders.
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We may issue preferred stock, additional shares of common stock or other classes of common stock, which issuance could adversely affect the holders of our common stock issued pursuant to our securities offerings.
Holders of our common stock do not have preemptive rights to any shares issued by us in the future. We may issue additional shares of common stock, without stockholder approval, including through the declaration of stock dividends, at a price which could dilute the value of existing stockholders’ shares. Further, we may issue, without stockholder approval, preferred stock or other classes of common stock with voting and conversion rights which could adversely affect the voting power of the common stockholders and with rights that could dilute the value of our stockholders’ shares of common stock. This would increase the number of stockholders entitled to distributions without simultaneously increasing the size of our asset base. Under our charter, we have authority to issue a total of 1.7 billion shares of capital stock. Of the total number of shares of capital stock authorized (a) 1.5 billion shares are designated as common stock, including 200.0 million classified as Class I-R shares, 200.0 million classified as Class T-R shares, 75.0 million classified as Class D-R shares, 425.0 million classified as Class S-PR shares, 175.0 million classified as Class D-PR shares and 425.0 million classified as Class I-PR shares, and (b) 200.0 million shares are designated as preferred stock. Our board of directors may amend our charter from time to time to increase or decrease the aggregate number of authorized shares of capital stock or the number of authorized shares of capital stock of any class or series that we have authority to issue without stockholder approval. Investors will also experience dilution if we issue equity compensation pursuant to our equity incentive plans, issue shares or OP Units to the Advisor in lieu of cash payments or reimbursements under the Advisory Agreement, or redeem OP Units for shares of common stock. In addition, we may cause the Operating Partnership to issue a substantial number of additional OP Units in order to raise capital in relation to the DST Program or otherwise, acquire properties, consummate a merger, business combination or another significant transaction. OP Units may generally be converted into shares of our common stock, thereby diluting the percentage ownership interest of other stockholders. Ultimately, any additional issuance by us of equity securities or by the Operating Partnership of OP Units will dilute our stockholders’ indirect interest in the Operating Partnership, through which we own all of our interests in our investments. If we ever created and issued preferred stock with a distribution preference over common stock, payment of any distribution preferences of outstanding preferred stock would reduce the amount of funds available for the payment of distributions on our common stock. Further, holders of preferred stock are normally entitled to receive a preference payment in the event we liquidate, dissolve or wind up before any payment is made to our common stockholders, likely reducing the amount common stockholders would otherwise receive upon such an occurrence. Holders of preferred stock or new classes of OP Units could be given other preferential rights, such as preferential redemption rights or preferential tax protection agreements, that could reduce the amount of funds available for the payment of distributions on our common stock or otherwise negatively affect our stockholders. In addition, under certain circumstances, the issuance of preferred stock, a new class of OP Units, or a separate class or series of common stock may render more difficult or tend to discourage:
• A merger, tender offer or proxy contest;
• The assumption of control by a holder of a large block of our securities; and/or
• The removal of incumbent management.
The limit on the percentage of shares of our common stock that any person may own may discourage a takeover or business combination that could benefit our stockholders.
Our charter restricts the direct or indirect ownership by one person or entity to no more than 9.8% of the value of our then outstanding capital stock (which includes common stock and any preferred stock we may issue) and no more than 9.8% of the value or number of shares, whichever is more restrictive, of our then outstanding common stock. This restriction may discourage a change of control of us and may deter individuals or entities from making tender offers for shares of our common stock on terms that might be financially attractive to stockholders or which may cause a change in our management. This ownership restriction may also prohibit business combinations that would have otherwise been approved by our board of directors and our stockholders. In addition to deterring potential transactions that may be favorable to our stockholders, these provisions may also decrease our stockholders’ ability to sell their shares of our common stock.
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Maryland law and our organizational documents limit our stockholders’ ability to amend our charter or terminate the Company without the approval of our board of directors.
Although the Statement of Policy Regarding Real Estate Investment Trusts published by the North American Securities Administrators Association, or the Statement of Policy, indicates that stockholders are permitted to amend our charter or terminate the Company without the necessity for concurrence by our board of directors, we are required to comply with the Maryland General Corporation Law, which provides that any amendment to our charter or any termination of the Company must first be declared advisable by our board of directors. Therefore, our charter provides that stockholders may vote to authorize the amendment of our charter or the termination of the Company, but only after such action has been declared advisable by our board of directors. Accordingly, the only proposals to amend our charter or to terminate the Company that will be presented to our stockholders will be those that have been declared advisable by our board of directors.
Our bylaws designate the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.
Our bylaws provide that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland shall be the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders with respect to the Company, our directors, our officers or our employees (we note we currently have no employees). This choice of forum provision will not apply to “securities law claims” which are (i) claims arising under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act and (ii) actions arising out of, or in connection with, the sale of securities in, or the violation of the laws of, the states and U.S. territories and districts in which our shares are sold (such states, territories and districts the “Relevant Jurisdictions”). We have appointed officials in the Relevant Jurisdictions upon whom may be served any notice, process or pleading in any action or proceeding against us arising out of, or in connection with, the sale of securities in the Relevant Jurisdictions or arising out of a violation of the laws of the Relevant Jurisdictions. We have also consented that any such action or proceeding may be commenced in any court of competent jurisdiction and proper venue within the Relevant Jurisdictions by service of process upon the respective official of the applicable Relevant Jurisdiction with the same effect as if we were organized or created under the laws of the Relevant Jurisdiction and have been lawfully served with process in the Relevant Jurisdiction. The inapplicability of this choice of forum provision to securities law claims will not cause this choice of forum provision to be inapplicable to other types of claims, whether they are brought concurrently with, before or after securities law claims.
This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim other than a securities law claim in a judicial forum that the stockholder believes is favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees, which may discourage meritorious claims from being asserted against us and our directors, officers and employees. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of our bylaws inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations.
Technological developments in artificial intelligence could disrupt the markets in which we and our borrowers operate and subject us to increased competition, legal and regulatory risks and compliance costs.
Artificial intelligence, including machine learning technology and generative artificial intelligence, is rapidly evolving. While the full extent of current or future risks related thereto is not possible to predict, artificial intelligence could significantly disrupt the business models and markets in which we and our borrowers operate and subject us to increased competition, legal and regulatory risks and compliance costs, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We, our Advisor and Ares use and plan to expand our use of artificial intelligence tools and technologies in the operation of our business and their businesses. These uses come with potential risks, including, but not limited to, generation of inaccurate results, misuse or disclosures of confidential information, infringement of third-party intellectual property rights, potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities, reputational risk and regulatory burdens. In addition, artificial intelligence models may create outputs that are flawed, inaccurate, biased, or that infringe or misappropriate intellectual property of third parties. The models may also be subject to new or different modes of cyber-attacks, including prompt injection attacks, and such attacks may be able to circumvent cybersecurity tools and processes that we or the providers of such tools have in place. To the extent we rely on such technologies, these risks could negatively impact our business. There is also a risk that artificial intelligence tools or applications may be misused by our Advisor’s employees or the employees of its affiliates, and/or third parties engaged by us, our Advisor or Ares. For example, an employee may input confidential information,
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including material non-public information, trade secrets, or personal information, into artificial intelligence technologies in a manner that results in such information becoming part of a dataset that is accessible by third-party artificial intelligence applications and users, including our competitors. Further, we, our Advisor or Ares may not be able to control how any third-party artificial intelligence technologies that we, our Advisor or Ares use are developed or maintained, or how data is used or disclosed, even where we have contractual protections with respect to these matters. The misuse or misappropriation of our data could have an adverse impact on our reputation and could subject us to legal and regulatory investigations and/or actions.
We may also be exposed to competitive risks related to the adoption of artificial intelligence or other new technologies by others within our industry. If our competitors are more successful than us in the use of artificial intelligence or development of services or products based on artificial intelligence, or we adopt artificial intelligence at a slower pace than others, we may be at a competitive disadvantage.
Finally, regulations related to artificial intelligence may also impose on us, our Advisor and Ares certain obligations and costs related to monitoring and compliance, and we, our Advisor and Ares could be subject to regulatory action if we, our Advisor or Ares are deemed not to have complied.
Increasing scrutiny from stakeholders and regulators with respect to sustainability matters may impose additional costs and expose us to additional risks.
Our business faces increasing public scrutiny related to sustainability activities. A variety of organizations measure the performance of companies on sustainability topics, and the results of these assessments are widely publicized. Certain institutional investors may consider such sustainability ratings and measures in making their investment decisions. If our sustainability ratings or performance do not meet the standards set by such investors or our stockholders, they may choose to exclude our securities from their investments.
We risk damage to our brand and reputation if we fail to act responsibly in a number of areas, including, but not limited to human rights, climate change and environmental stewardship, support for local communities, corporate governance and transparency, or consideration of sustainability factors in our investment processes. Adverse incidents with respect to sustainability activities could impact the value of our brand, the cost of our operations and relationships with investors, all of which could adversely affect our business and results of operations.
“Anti-ESG” sentiment has gained momentum across the U.S., with several states, the executive branch and federal agencies, and Congress having proposed, enacted or indicated an intent to pursue “anti-ESG” policies, legislation, or initiatives, have issued related legal opinions, and pursued related investigations and litigation. If investors subject to “anti-ESG” legislation view our Manager’s responsible investing or sustainability practices as being in contradiction of such “anti-ESG” policies, legislation, initiatives or legal opinions, such investors may not invest in us and it could negatively impact the price of our common stock. In addition, corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”) practices have recently come under increasing scrutiny. For example, some conservative groups and federal and state officials have asserted that the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision striking down race-based affirmative action in higher education in June 2023 should be analogized to private employment matters and private contract matters. Several media campaigns and cases alleging discrimination based on such arguments have been initiated since the decision and, in January 2025, the Trump Administration signed a number of Executive Orders focused on DEI, which caution the private sector to end “illegal DEI discrimination and preferences” and preview upcoming compliance investigations of private entities, including publicly traded companies. Agencies across the federal government, including the Department of Justice, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, have been focusing on DEI-related investigations and enforcement. It is uncertain how the interpretation, application, and enforcement of laws (including U.S. state and federal nondiscrimination laws), policies, and public sentiment related to DEI will evolve, and it may become increasingly challenging to establish global DEI-related policies and programs that meet the varied laws, policies, and norms of different jurisdictions. If we do not successfully manage expectations across varied stakeholder interests, it could erode stakeholder trust, impact our reputation and constrain our investment opportunities. Such scrutiny of both sustainability and DEI related practices could expose our Manager to the risk of litigation, investigations or challenges by federal or state authorities or result in reputational harm.
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There is also regulatory interest across jurisdictions in improving transparency regarding the definition, measurement and disclosure of sustainability factors in order to allow investors to validate and better understand sustainability claims. For example, the SEC sometimes reviews compliance with sustainability commitments in examinations and has taken enforcement actions against registered investment advisers for not establishing adequate or consistently implementing responsible investment policies and procedures to meet sustainability commitments to investors.
In addition, compliance with any new laws or regulations increases our regulatory burden and could result in increased legal, accounting and compliance costs, make some activities more difficult, time-consuming and costly, affect the manner in which we conduct our business and adversely affect our profitability.
We intend to disclose funds from operations (“FFO”) and adjusted funds from operations (“AFFO”), each a non-GAAP financial measure, in future communications with investors, including documents filed with the SEC. However, FFO and AFFO are not equivalent to our net income or loss as determined under GAAP, and do not represent a complete measure of our financial position and results of operations.
We use, and we disclose to investors, FFO and AFFO, which are considered non-GAAP financial measures. For a discussion of FFO and AFFO, including definitions, reconciliation to GAAP net income (loss), and the inherent limitations of FFO and AFFO, see Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. FFO and AFFO are not equivalent to our net income or loss as determined in accordance with GAAP. FFO and GAAP net income differ because FFO excludes gains or losses from sales of property and impairment of depreciable real estate, and adds back real estate-related depreciation and amortization. AFFO further adjusts FFO by removing the impact of (i) performance-based incentive fee (income) expense, (ii) unrealized (gain) loss from changes in fair value of financial instruments, (iii) increase (decrease) in financing obligation liability appreciation, and (iv) forfeited investment deposits.
No single measure can provide investors with sufficient information and investors should consider all of our disclosures as a whole in order to adequately understand our financial position, liquidity and results of operations. Because of the differences between FFO, AFFO and GAAP net income or loss, FFO and AFFO may not be accurate indicators of our operating performance, especially during periods in which we are acquiring properties. In addition, FFO and AFFO are not necessarily indicative of cash flow available to fund cash needs and investors should not consider FFO and AFFO as alternatives to cash flows from operations or as indications of our liquidity, or indicative of funds available to fund our cash needs, including our ability to make distributions to our stockholders. Neither the SEC nor any other regulatory body has passed judgment on the acceptability of the adjustments that we use to calculate AFFO. Also, because not all companies calculate FFO and AFFO the same way, comparisons with other companies may not be meaningful.
RISKS RELATED TO INVESTMENTS IN PROPERTY
Adverse economic and other conditions in the regions where our assets are located may adversely affect our levels of occupancy, the terms of our leases, and our ability to lease available areas, which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations.
Our results of operations depend substantially on our ability to lease the areas available in the properties that we own as well as the price at which we lease such space. Adverse conditions in the regions and specific markets where we operate may reduce our ability to lease our properties, reduce occupancy levels, restrict our ability to increase rental rates and force us to lower rental rates and/or offer customer incentives. Should our assets fail to generate sufficient revenues for us to meet our obligations, our financial condition and results of operations, as well as our ability to make distributions, could be adversely affected. The following factors, among others, may adversely affect the operating performance of our properties:
• Economic downturn and turmoil in the financial markets may preclude us from leasing our properties or increase the vacancy level of our assets;
• Periods of increased interest rates could result in, among other things, an increase in defaults by customers, a decline in our property values, and make it more difficult for us to dispose of our properties at an attractive price;
• Rising vacancy rates for commercial property, particularly in large metropolitan areas;
• Our inability to attract and maintain quality customers;
• Default or breaches by our customers of their contractual obligations;
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• Increases in our operating costs, including the need for capital improvements;
• Increases in the taxes levied on our business;
• Regulatory changes affecting the real estate industry, including zoning rules; and
• Susceptibility of certain areas to natural disasters.
We anticipate that our investments in real estate assets will be concentrated in industrial properties, and the demand for industrial space in the U.S. is related to the level of economic activity. Accordingly, reduced economic activity may lead to lower occupancy and/or rental rates for our properties.
We face possible risks associated with the physical effects of climate change.
The physical effects of climate change, including extreme weather events such as hurricanes or floods, could have a material adverse impact on our properties, operations and business. For example, our properties could be severely damaged or destroyed from either singular extreme weather events (for example floods, storms and wildfires) or through long-term impacts of climatic conditions (such as precipitation frequency, weather instability and rising sea levels). Such events could also adversely impact us or the tenants of our properties if we or they are unable to operate our or their businesses due to damage resulting from such events. If we fail to adequately prepare for such events, our revenues, results of operations and financial condition may be impacted. Climate change could also increase utility and other costs of operating our properties, including increased costs for energy and other supply chain materials, which, if not offset by rising rental income and/or paid by tenants, could have a material adverse effect on our properties, operations and business. In addition, we may incur significant costs in preparing for possible future climate change or climate-related events or in response to our tenants’ requests for such investments and we may not realize desirable returns on those investments.
Properties that we may own or acquire that incur vacancies for a significant period of time could be difficult to sell, which could diminish the return to our stockholders.
A property may incur a vacancy either by the continued default of a customer under its lease or the expiration of the lease. We may have difficulty obtaining a new customer for any vacant space we have in our real properties, including properties we acquire with vacancies. If property vacancies continue for a long period of time, we may suffer reduced revenues, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and NAV, or result in lower cash distributions to our stockholders. In addition, because properties’ market values depend principally upon the cash flow generated by the properties’ leases, the resale value of properties with prolonged vacancies could suffer, which could further reduce returns to our stockholders.
Risks related to the development of properties may have an adverse effect on our results of operations and returns to our stockholders.
The risk associated with development and construction activities carried out by real estate companies like ours include, among others, the following:
• Long periods of time may elapse between the commencement and the completion of our projects;
• Construction and development costs may exceed original estimates;
• The developer/builder may be unable to index costs or receivables to inflation indices prevailing in the industry;
• The level of interest of potential customers for a recently launched development may be low;
• There could be delays in obtaining necessary permits;
• The supply and availability of construction materials and equipment may decrease and the price of construction materials and equipment may increase;
• Construction and sales may not be completed on time, resulting in a cost increase;
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• It may be difficult to acquire land for new developments or properties;
• Labor may be in limited availability;
• Changes in tax, real estate and zoning laws may be unfavorable to us; and
• Unforeseen environmental or other site conditions.
In addition, our reputation and the construction quality of any future real estate developments, whether operated individually or through partnerships, may be determining factors for our ability to lease space and grow. The timely delivery of real estate projects and the quality of our developments, however, will depend on certain factors beyond our full control, including the quality and timeliness of construction materials delivered to us and the technical capabilities of our contractor. If one or more problems affect our real estate developments, our reputation and future performance may be negatively affected and we may be exposed to civil liability.
Companies in the real estate industry, including us, depend on a variety of factors outside of their control to develop, build and operate real estate projects. These factors include, among others, the availability of market resources for financing, land acquisition and project development. We may be unable to obtain financing for construction and development activities under favorable terms, including but not limited to interest rates, maturity dates and/or loan to value ratios, or at all, which could cause us to delay or even abandon potential development projects. Further, any scarcity of market resources, including human capital, may decrease our development capacity due to either difficulty in obtaining credit for land acquisition or construction financing or a need to reduce the pace of our growth. The combination of these risks may adversely affect our revenues, results of operations, financial condition and our ability to make distributions to our stockholders which may adversely affect the value of our stockholders’ investment.
Delays in the acquisition, development and construction of properties or debt investments may have adverse effects on portfolio diversification, results of operations, and returns on our stockholders’ investment.
Delays we encounter in the acquisition, development and construction of properties could adversely affect our stockholders’ returns. To the extent that such disruptions continue, we may be delayed in our ability to invest our capital in property investments that meet our acquisition criteria. Such delays would result in our maintaining a relatively higher cash balance than expected, which could have a negative effect on our stockholders’ returns until the capital is invested.
In addition, where properties are acquired prior to the start of construction or during the early stages of construction, it will typically take several months or longer to complete construction, to rent available space, and for rent payments to commence. If these delays occur, or if we are required to abandon construction, we may not receive any income from these properties and distributions to our stockholders could suffer. Delays in the completion of construction could give customers the right to terminate preconstruction leases for space at a newly developed project. We may incur additional risks when we make periodic progress payments or other advances to builders prior to completion of construction. Each of those factors could result in increased costs of a project or loss of our investment. In addition, we will be subject to normal lease-up risks relating to newly constructed projects. Furthermore, the price we agree to pay for a property will be based on our projections of rental income and expenses and estimates of the fair market value of the property upon completion of construction. If our projections are inaccurate, we may pay too much for a property.
Changes in supply of or demand for similar properties in a particular area may increase the price of real estate assets we seek to purchase or adversely affect the value of the properties we own.
The real estate industry is subject to market forces and we are unable to predict certain market changes including changes in supply of or demand for similar properties in a particular area. For example, if demand for the types of real estate assets in which we seek to invest were to sharply increase or supply of those assets were to sharply decrease, the prices of those assets could rise significantly. Any potential purchase of an overpriced asset could decrease our rate of return on these investments and result in lower operating results and overall returns to our stockholders. Likewise, a sharp decrease in demand or increase in supply could adversely affect leasing rates and occupancy, which could impact operating results, our NAV or overall returns to our stockholders.
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Actions of joint venture partners could adversely impact our performance.
We have entered, and may continue to enter, into joint venture partnerships with third parties, including entities that are affiliated with the Advisor. We may also purchase and develop properties in joint ventures or in partnerships, co-tenancies or other co-ownership arrangements with the sellers of the properties, affiliates of the sellers, developers or other persons. Such investments may involve risks not otherwise present with a direct investment in real estate, including, for example:
• The possibility that our venture partner, co-tenant or partner in an investment might become bankrupt or otherwise be unable to meet its capital contribution obligations;
• That such venture partner, co-tenant or partner may at any time have economic or business interests or goals which are or which become inconsistent with our business interests or goals;
• That such venture partner, co-tenant or partner may be in a position to take action contrary to our instructions or requests or contrary to our policies or objectives; or
• That actions by such venture partner could adversely affect our reputation, negatively impacting our ability to conduct business.
Actions by such a joint venture partner or co-tenant, which are generally out of our control, might have the result of subjecting the property to liabilities in excess of those contemplated and may have the effect of reducing our stockholders’ returns, particularly if the joint venture agreement provides that the joint venture partner is the managing partner or otherwise maintains a controlling interest that could allow it to take actions contrary to our interests.
Under certain joint venture arrangements, neither venture partner may have the power to control the venture, and an impasse could be reached, which might have a negative influence on the joint venture and decrease potential returns to our stockholders. In the event that a venture partner has a right of first refusal to buy out the other partner, it may be unable to finance such a buy-out at that time. For example, certain actions by the joint venture partnership may require joint approval of our affiliated partners, on the one hand, and our joint venture partner, on the other hand. An impasse among the partners could result in a “deadlock event,” which could trigger a buy-sell mechanism under the partnership agreement and, under certain circumstances, could lead to a liquidation of all or a portion of the partnership’s portfolio. In such circumstances, we may also be subject to the 100% penalty tax on “prohibited transactions.” It may also be difficult for us to sell our interest in any such joint venture or partnership or as a co-customer in a particular property. In addition, to the extent that our venture partner or co-customer is an affiliate of the Advisor, certain conflicts of interest will exist.
Properties are illiquid investments and we may be unable to adjust our portfolio in response to changes in economic or other conditions or sell a property if or when we decide to do so.
Properties are illiquid investments and we may be unable to adjust our portfolio in response to changes in economic or other conditions. In addition, the real estate market is affected by many factors, such as general economic conditions, availability of financing, interest rates and other factors, including supply and demand, that are beyond our control. We cannot predict whether we will be able to sell any property for the price or on the terms set by us, or whether any price or other terms offered by a prospective purchaser would be acceptable to us. We cannot predict the length of time needed to find a willing purchaser and to close the sale of a property.
We may also be required to expend funds to correct defects or to make improvements before a property can be sold. There can be no assurance that we will have funds available to correct such defects or to make such improvements.
In acquiring a property, we may agree to restrictions that prohibit the sale of that property for a period of time or impose other restrictions, such as a limitation on the amount of debt that can be placed or repaid on that property. All of these provisions would restrict our ability to sell a property.
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Our operating expenses may increase in the future and to the extent such increases cannot be passed on to our customers, our cash flow and our operating results would decrease.
Operating expenses, such as expenses for property and other taxes, fuel, utilities, labor, building materials and insurance are not fixed and may increase in the future. Furthermore, we may not be able to pass these increases on to our customers. To the extent such increases cannot be passed on to our customers, any such increases would cause our cash flow and our operating results to decrease.
We compete with numerous other parties or entities for property investments and customers and may not compete successfully.
We compete with numerous other persons or entities seeking to buy or develop real estate assets or to attract customers to properties we already own, including with entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor, which may have a negative impact on our ability to acquire real property assets or attract customers on favorable terms, if at all, and the returns on our properties. These persons or entities may have greater experience and financial strength than us. There is no assurance that we will be able to acquire or develop real estate assets or attract customers on favorable terms, if at all. For example, our competitors may be willing to offer space at rental rates below our rates, causing us to lose existing or potential customers and pressuring us to reduce our rental rates to retain existing customers or convince new customers to lease space at our properties. Similarly, the opening of new competing assets near the assets that we own may hinder our ability to renew our existing leases or to lease to new customers, because the proximity of new competitors may divert existing or new customers to such competitors. In addition, if market rental rates decline during the term of an existing lease, we may be unable to renew or find a new customer without lowering the rental rate. Each of these could adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition, value of our investments or ability to pay distributions to our stockholders.
The operating results of the assets that we own may be impacted by our customers’ financial condition.
Our income is derived primarily from lease payments made by our customers. As such, our performance is indirectly affected by the financial results of our customers, as difficulties experienced by our customers could result in defaults in their obligations to us. Furthermore, certain of our assets may utilize leases with payments directly related to customer sales, where the amount of rent that we charge a customer is calculated as a percentage of such customer’s revenues over a fixed period of time, and a reduction in sales can reduce the amount of the lease payments required to be made to us by customers leasing space in such assets.
The financial results of our customers can depend on several factors, including but not limited to the general business environment, interest rates, inflation, the availability of credit, taxation and overall consumer confidence. An economic downturn can be expected to negatively impact all of these factors, some to a greater degree than others.
In addition, our ability to increase our revenues and operating income partially depends on steady growth of demand for the products and services offered by the customers located in the assets that we own and manage. A drop in demand, as a result of a slowdown in the U.S. and global economies or otherwise, could result in a reduction in customer performance and consequently, adversely affect us.
If we enter into long-term leases with customers, those leases may not result in market rental rates over time, which could adversely affect our revenues and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.
We expect that the majority of our leases will be long-term operating leases. Long-term leases, as well as leases with renewal options that specify a maximum rent increase, may not allow for market-based or significant increases in rental payments during the term of the lease. If we do not accurately judge the potential for increases in market rental rates when negotiating these long-term leases, we may have no ability to terminate those leases or to adjust the rent to then-prevailing market rates. These circumstances could negatively impact our operating results and affect our ability to make distributions to our stockholders.
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Lease agreements may have specific provisions that create risks to our business and may adversely affect us.
Our lease agreements are regulated by local, municipal, state and federal laws, which may grant certain rights to customers, such as the compulsory renewal of their lease by filing lease renewal actions when certain legal conditions are met. A lease renewal action may represent two principal risks for us: (i) if we plan to vacate a given unit in order to change or adapt an asset’s mix of customers, the customer could remain in that unit by filing a lease renewal action and interfere with our strategy; and (ii) if we desire to increase the lease price for a specific unit, this increase may need to be approved in the course of a lease renewal action, and the final value could be decided at the discretion of a judge. We would then be subject to the court’s interpretation and decision, and could be forced to accept an even lower price for the lease of the unit. The compulsory renewal of our lease agreements and/or the judicial review of our lease prices may adversely affect our cash flow and our operating results.
Certain of our lease agreements are not “triple net leases,” under which the customer undertakes to pay all the expenses of maintaining the leased property, including insurance, taxes, utilities and repairs. We may be exposed to higher maintenance, tax, and property management expenses with respect to all of our leases that are not “triple net.”
Operating expenses, such as expenses for fuel, utilities, labor, building materials and insurance are not fixed and may increase in the future. There is no guarantee that we will be able to pass such increases on to our customers. To the extent such increases cannot be passed on to our customers, any such increases could negatively impact our cash flow, NAV or operating results.
We depend on the availability of public utilities and services, especially for water and electric power. Any reduction, interruption or cancellation of these services may adversely affect us.
Public utilities, especially those that provide water and electric power, are fundamental for the sound operation of our assets. The delayed delivery or any material reduction or prolonged interruption of these services could allow certain customers to terminate their leases or result in an increase in our costs, as we may be forced to use backup generators, which also could be insufficient to fully operate our facilities and could result in our inability to provide services. Accordingly, any interruption or limitation in the provision of these essential services may adversely affect us.
Our industry is subject to extensive regulation, which may result in higher expenses or other negative consequences that could adversely affect us.
Our activities are subject to federal, state and municipal laws, and to regulations, authorizations and license requirements with respect to, among other things, zoning, environmental protection and historical heritage, all of which may affect our business. We may be required to obtain licenses and permits with different governmental authorities in order to acquire and manage our assets.
In addition, public authorities may enact new and more stringent standards, or interpret existing laws and regulations in a more restrictive manner, which may force companies in the real estate industry, including us, to spend funds to comply with these new rules, alter the use and occupancy of certain properties, or reduce revenue. Currently across the United States and elsewhere, owners of real property, especially those occupied by individuals (e.g., apartments), as well as industrial warehouses and distribution centers, are coming under increased scrutiny from local, state and federal authorities as well as tenant activist groups. Some are taking proactive measures, either in the form of legislation, administrative actions, or litigation, that could ultimately adversely affect our results from operations, cash flow, distributions and NAV.
In the event of noncompliance with such laws, regulations, licenses and authorizations, we may face the payment of fines, project shutdowns, cancellation of licenses, and revocation of authorizations, in addition to other civil and criminal penalties.
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Our properties will be subject to property and other taxes that may increase in the future, which could adversely affect our cash flow.
Our properties will be subject to real and personal property and other taxes that may increase as tax rates change and as the properties are assessed or reassessed by taxing authorities. Certain of our leases provide that the property taxes, or increases therein, are charged to the lessees as an expense related to the properties that they occupy while other leases generally provide that we are responsible for such taxes. In any case, as the owner of the properties, we are ultimately responsible for payment of the taxes to the applicable governmental authorities. If property taxes increase, our customers may be unable to make the required tax payments, ultimately requiring us to pay the taxes even if otherwise stated under the terms of the lease. If we fail to pay any such taxes, the applicable taxing authorities may place a lien on the property and the property may be subject to a tax sale. In addition, we will generally be responsible for property taxes related to any vacant space.
Uninsured losses or premiums for insurance coverage relating to property may adversely affect our operating results.
There are types of losses, generally catastrophic in nature, such as losses due to wars, acts of terrorism, earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, pollution or environmental matters that are uninsurable or not economically insurable, or may be insured subject to limitations, such as large deductibles or co-payments. Risks associated with potential acts of terrorism could sharply increase the premiums we pay for coverage against property and casualty claims. Additionally, mortgage lenders sometimes require commercial property owners to purchase specific coverage against terrorism as a condition for providing mortgage loans. These policies may not be available at a reasonable cost, if at all, which could inhibit our ability to finance or refinance our properties. In such instances, we may be required to provide other financial support, either through financial assurances or self-insurance, to cover potential losses. Changes in the cost or availability of insurance could expose us to uninsured casualty losses. In the event that any of our properties incurs a casualty loss that is not fully covered by insurance, the value of our assets will be reduced by any such uninsured loss. In addition, we could be held liable for indemnifying possible victims of an accident. There can be no assurance that funding will be available to us for repair or reconstruction of damaged property in the future or for liability payments to accident victims.
Environmentally hazardous conditions may adversely affect our operating results.
Under various federal, state and local environmental laws, a current or previous owner or operator of property may be liable for the cost of removing or remediating hazardous or toxic substances on such property. Such laws often impose liability whether or not the owner or operator knew of, or was responsible for, the presence of such hazardous or toxic substances. Even if more than one person may have been responsible for the contamination, each person covered by the environmental laws may be held responsible for all of the clean-up costs incurred. In addition, third parties may sue the owner or operator of a site for damages based on personal injury, natural resources or property damage or other costs, including investigation and clean-up costs, resulting from the environmental contamination. The presence of hazardous or toxic substances on one of our properties, or the failure to properly remediate a contaminated property, could give rise to a lien in favor of the government for costs it may incur to address the contamination, or otherwise adversely affect our ability to sell or lease the property or borrow using the property as collateral. Environmental laws also may impose restrictions on the manner in which property may be used or businesses may be operated. A property owner who violates environmental laws may be subject to sanctions which may be enforced by governmental agencies or, in certain circumstances, private parties. In connection with the acquisition and ownership of our properties, we may be exposed to such costs. The cost of defending against environmental claims, of compliance with environmental regulatory requirements or of remediating any contaminated property could materially adversely affect our business, assets or results of operations and, consequently, amounts available for distribution to our stockholders.
Environmental laws in the U.S. also require that owners or operators of buildings containing asbestos properly manage and maintain the asbestos, adequately inform or train those who may come into contact with asbestos and undertake special precautions, including removal or other abatement, in the event that asbestos is disturbed during building renovation or demolition. These laws may impose fines and penalties on building owners or operators who fail to comply with these requirements and may allow third parties to seek recovery from owners or operators for personal injury associated with exposure to asbestos. Some of our properties may contain asbestos-containing building materials.
We intend to invest in properties historically used for industrial, manufacturing and commercial purposes. Some of these properties may contain at the time of our investment, or may have contained prior to our investment, underground storage tanks for the storage of petroleum products and other hazardous or toxic substances. All of these operations create a potential for the release of petroleum products or other hazardous or toxic substances. Some of the properties that we acquire may be adjacent to or near other properties that have contained or then currently contain underground storage tanks used to store petroleum products or other hazardous or toxic substances. In addition, certain of the properties that we
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acquire may be on or adjacent to or near other properties upon which others, including former owners or customers of our properties, have engaged, or may in the future engage, in activities that may release petroleum products or other hazardous or toxic substances.
From time to time, we may acquire properties, or interests in properties, with known adverse environmental conditions. In such an instance, we will underwrite the new anticipated costs of environmental investigation, clean-up and monitoring into the cost, as applicable. Further, in connection with property dispositions, we may agree to remain responsible for, and to bear the cost of, remediating or monitoring certain environmental conditions on the properties.
All of our properties will have been subject to a Phase I or similar environmental assessment by independent environmental consultants prior to or in connection with our acquisition of such properties. Phase I assessments are intended to discover and evaluate information regarding the environmental condition of the surveyed property and surrounding properties. Phase I assessments generally include a historical review, a public records review, an investigation of the surveyed site and surrounding properties, and preparation and issuance of a written report, but do not include soil sampling or subsurface investigations and typically do not include an asbestos survey. Nonetheless, an environmental liability that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations taken as a whole, may exist at the time of acquisition or may arise in the future, with respect to any properties that we acquire. Material environmental conditions, liabilities or compliance concerns may arise after an environmental assessment has been completed. Moreover, it is possible that (i) future laws, ordinances or regulations may impose a material environmental liability or (ii) the then current environmental condition of the properties that we acquire may be affected by customers, by the condition of land or operations in the vicinity of such properties (such as releases from underground storage tanks), or by third parties unrelated to us.
Costs of complying with environmental laws and regulations may adversely affect our income and the cash available for any distributions.
All property and the operations conducted on property are subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to environmental protection and human health and safety. Customers’ ability to operate and to generate income to pay their lease obligations may be affected by permitting and compliance obligations arising under such laws and regulations. Some of these laws and regulations may impose joint and several liability on customers, owners or operators for the costs to investigate or remediate contaminated properties, regardless of fault or whether the acts causing the contamination were legal. Leasing properties to customers that engage in industrial, manufacturing, and commercial activities will cause us to be subject to the risk of liabilities under environmental laws and regulations. In addition, the presence of hazardous or toxic substances, or the failure to properly remediate these substances, may adversely affect our ability to sell, rent or pledge such property as collateral for future borrowings.
Some of these laws and regulations have been amended so as to require compliance with new or more stringent standards as of future dates. Compliance with new or more stringent laws or regulations or stricter interpretation of existing laws may require us to incur material expenditures. Future laws, ordinances or regulations may impose material environmental liability. Additionally, our customers’ operations, the existing condition of land when we buy it, operations in the vicinity of our properties, such as the presence of underground storage tanks, or activities of unrelated third parties may affect our properties. In addition, there are various local, state and federal fire, health, life-safety and similar regulations with which we may be required to comply and which may subject us to liability in the form of fines or damages for noncompliance. Any material expenditures, fines or damages we must pay will reduce our ability to make distributions.
In addition, changes in these laws and governmental regulations, or their interpretation by agencies or the courts, could occur.
The costs associated with complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act may reduce the amount of cash available for distribution to our stockholders.
Investment in properties may also be subject to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended (the “Disabilities Act”). Under the Disabilities Act, all places of public accommodation are required to comply with federal requirements related to access and use by disabled persons. The Disabilities Act has separate compliance requirements for “public accommodations” and “commercial facilities” which generally require that buildings and services be made accessible and available to people with disabilities. The Disabilities Act’s requirements could require us to remove access barriers and our failure to comply with the Disabilities Act’s requirements could result in the imposition of injunctive relief, monetary
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penalties or, in some cases, an award of damages. Any monies we use to comply with the Disabilities Act will reduce our NAV and the amount of cash available for distribution to our stockholders.
We may not have funding for future customer improvements which may adversely affect the value of our assets, our results of operations and returns to our stockholders.
If a customer at one of our properties does not renew its lease or otherwise vacates its space in one of our buildings, it is likely that, in order to attract one or more new customers, we will be required to expend substantial funds to construct new customer improvements in the vacated space. Substantially all of the net proceeds from our securities offerings will be used to acquire property, debt and other investments, and we do not anticipate that we will maintain permanent working capital reserves. We do not currently have an identified funding source to provide funds which may be required in the future for customer improvements and customer refurbishments in order to attract new customers. If we do not establish sufficient reserves for working capital or obtain adequate secured financing to supply necessary funds for capital improvements or similar expenses, we may be required to defer necessary or desirable improvements to our properties. If we defer such improvements, the applicable properties may decline in value, and it may be more difficult for us to attract or retain customers to such properties or the amount of rent we can charge at such properties may decrease. There can be no assurance that we will have any sources of funding available to us for repair or reconstruction of damaged property in the future.
Investments made outside of the U.S. will be subject to currency rate exposure and risks associated with the uncertainty of foreign laws and markets, as well as potential trade wars.
We may invest outside of the U.S., most likely in Mexico or Canada, to the extent that opportunities exist that may help us meet our investment objectives. For example, to the extent that we invest in property located outside of the U.S., in addition to risks inherent in an investment in real estate generally discussed herein, we will also be subject to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, changes in U.S. regulations concerning foreign investments, if any, the economic uncertainty that may be caused by the President’s imposition of tariffs on such countries and any retaliatory measures taken by such countries, and the uncertainty of foreign laws and markets including, but not limited to, unexpected changes in regulatory requirements, political and economic instability in certain geographic locations, difficulties in managing international operations, currency exchange controls, potentially adverse tax consequences, additional accounting and control expenses and the administrative burden associated with complying with a wide variety of foreign laws. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates may adversely impact the fair values and earnings streams of our international holdings and therefore the returns on our non-dollar denominated investments. Although we may hedge our foreign currency risk subject to the REIT income qualification tests, we may not be able to do so successfully and may incur losses on these investments as a result of exchange rate fluctuations.
RISKS RELATED TO DEBT AND SECURED FINANCINGS
We intend to continue to incur mortgage indebtedness, corporate indebtedness and other borrowings, which may increase our business risks, and could hinder our ability to make distributions to our stockholders.
As of December 31, 2025, we had approximately $4.8 billion of consolidated indebtedness and $72.6 million of secured financings outstanding. We intend to continue to finance a portion of the purchase price of our investments by borrowing funds. Under our charter, we have a limitation on borrowing which precludes us from borrowing in excess of 300% of the value of our net assets, provided that we may exceed this limit if a higher level of borrowing is approved by a majority of our independent directors. Net assets for purposes of this calculation are defined to be our total assets (other than intangibles), valued at cost prior to deducting depreciation, reserves for bad debts or other non-cash reserves, less total liabilities. Generally speaking, the preceding limitation provides for borrowings of up to 75% of the aggregate cost of our real estate assets before non-cash reserves and depreciation. In addition, we may incur mortgage debt and pledge some or all of our properties or other assets as security for that debt to obtain funds to acquire additional property, debt or other investments. We may also borrow funds to make distributions, to redeem securities, to satisfy the REIT distribution requirements or for any working capital purposes. Furthermore, we may borrow if we otherwise deem it necessary or advisable to ensure that we maintain our qualification as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
High debt levels will cause us to incur higher interest charges, which would result in higher debt service payments and could be accompanied by restrictive covenants. If there is a shortfall between the cash flow from a property and the cash flow needed to service mortgage debt on that property, then the amount available for distributions to stockholders may be reduced. In addition, incurring mortgage debt increases the risk of loss since defaults on indebtedness secured by a property
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may result in lenders initiating foreclosure actions. In that case, we could lose the property securing the loan that is in default, thus reducing the value of our stockholders’ investment. For tax purposes, a foreclosure on any of our properties will be treated as a sale of the property for a purchase price equal to the outstanding balance of the debt secured by the mortgage. If the outstanding balance of the debt secured by the mortgage exceeds our tax basis in the property, we will recognize taxable income on foreclosure, but we would not receive any cash proceeds. We may give full or partial guarantees to lenders. When we give a guaranty on behalf of an entity that owns one of our properties, we will be responsible to the lender for satisfaction of the debt if it is not paid by such entity. If any mortgage contains cross collateralization or cross default provisions, a default on a single property could affect multiple properties. If any of our properties are foreclosed upon due to a default, our ability to pay cash distributions to our stockholders could be adversely affected.
We may not be able to obtain debt financing necessary to run our business.
We do not anticipate that we will maintain any permanent working capital reserves. Accordingly, we expect to need to borrow capital for acquisitions, the improvement of our properties, and for other purposes. Under current or future market conditions, we may not be able to borrow all of the funds we may need. If we cannot obtain debt or equity financing on acceptable terms, our ability to acquire new investments to expand our operations will be adversely affected. As a result, we would be less able to achieve our investment objectives, which may negatively impact our results of operations and reduce our ability to make distributions to our stockholders.
Increases in mortgage interest rates and/or unfavorable changes in other financing terms may make it more difficult for us to finance or refinance properties, which could reduce the number of properties we can acquire and the amount of cash distributions we can make to our stockholders.
If mortgage or corporate debt is unavailable on reasonable terms as a result of increased interest rates, increased credit spreads, decreased liquidity or other factors, we may not be able to finance the initial purchase of properties. In addition, when we incur debt, we run the risk of being unable to refinance such debt when the loans come due, or of being unable to refinance on favorable terms. If interest rates are higher or other financing terms, such as principal amortization, are not as favorable when we refinance debt, our income could be reduced. We may be unable to refinance debt at appropriate times, which may require us to sell properties on terms that are not advantageous to us, or, with respect to mortgage debt could result in the foreclosure of such properties. If any of these events occur, our cash flow would be reduced. This, in turn, would reduce cash available for distribution to our stockholders and may hinder our ability to raise more capital by issuing securities or by borrowing more money.
Increases in interest rates could increase the amount of our debt payments and therefore negatively impact our operating results.
Our debt may be subject to the fluctuation of market interest rates such as the Prime rate, Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”), and other benchmark rates. Should such interest rates increase, our debt payments may also increase, reducing cash available for distributions. Furthermore, if we need to repay existing debt during periods of rising interest rates, we could be required to liquidate one or more of our investments at times which may not permit realization of the maximum return on such investments. Additionally, as it relates to any real estate assets that we may own, an increase in interest rates may negatively impact activity in the consumer market and reduce consumer purchases, which could adversely affect us.
We have entered into loan agreements that contain restrictive covenants relating to our operations, which could limit our ability to make distributions to our stockholders, fund redemptions, exercise our fair market purchase option with respect to or raise additional capital through the DST Program, replace the Advisor or otherwise meet our investment objectives.
When providing financing, a lender typically imposes restrictions on us that may affect our distribution and operating policies and our ability to incur additional debt. Our loan agreements include restrictions, covenants, customary market carve-outs and/or guarantees by us. Certain financial covenants include tests of our general liquidity and debt servicing capability as well as certain collateral specific performance and valuation ratios. In addition, our loan agreements may contain covenants that limit our ability to further leverage the property, discontinue insurance coverage or replace the Advisor as our advisor. Further, our loan agreements may limit our ability to replace our property managers or terminate certain operating or lease agreements related to the property. In addition, certain of our loan agreements require that we maintain certain minimum ownership of the Operating Partnership at all times, which could adversely affect our flexibility
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in determining when to exercise the Operating Partnership’s fair market value purchase option to acquire DST Interests in exchange for OP Units or whether and when to launch additional offerings our DST Program. These or other limitations may adversely affect our flexibility and our ability to achieve our investment objectives, fund redemptions and make distributions to our stockholders. There can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with these covenants in the future, or that if we violate a covenant the lender would be willing to provide a waiver of such covenant. Violation of these covenants could result in the acceleration of maturities under the default provisions of our loan agreements.
Risks related to floating rate indebtedness rates could increase the amount of our debt payments and therefore negatively impact our operating results.
Borrowings under our line of credit and portions of our borrowings under our term loan are, and certain of our future debt may be, subject to the fluctuation of market interest rates such as the SOFR, Prime rate, and other benchmark rates. Should such interest rates increase, our debt payments may also increase, reducing cash available for distributions. Furthermore, if we need to repay existing debt during periods of rising interest rates, we could be required to liquidate one or more of our investments at times which may not permit realization of the maximum return on such investments. Additionally, as it relates to any real estate assets that we may own, an increase in interest rates may negatively impact activity in the consumer market and reduce consumer purchases, which could adversely affect us.
Furthermore, U.S. and international regulators and law enforcement agencies have conducted investigations into a number of rates or indices which are deemed to be “reference rates.” Actions by such regulators and law enforcement agencies may result in changes to the manner in which certain reference rates are determined, their discontinuance, or the establishment of alternative reference rates.
We may enter into financing arrangements that require us to use and pledge offering proceeds to secure and repay such borrowings, and such arrangements may adversely affect our ability to make investments and operate our business.
We may enter into financing arrangements that require us to use and pledge future proceeds from our current securities offerings or future offerings, if any, to secure and repay such borrowings. Such arrangements may cause us to have less proceeds available to make investments or otherwise operate our business, which may adversely affect our flexibility and our ability to achieve our investment objectives.
We may enter into financing arrangements involving balloon payment obligations, which may adversely affect our ability to refinance or sell properties on favorable terms, and to make distributions to our stockholders.
Some of our financing arrangements may require us to make a lump-sum or “balloon” payment at maturity. Our ability to make a balloon payment at maturity will be uncertain and may depend upon our ability to obtain additional financing or our ability to sell the particular property. At the time the balloon payment is due, we may or may not be able to refinance the balloon payment on terms as favorable as the original loan or sell the particular property at a price sufficient to make the balloon payment. The effect of a refinancing or sale could affect the rate of return to our stockholders and the projected time of disposition of our assets. In an environment of increasing mortgage rates, if we place mortgage debt on properties, we run the risk of being unable to refinance such debt if mortgage rates are higher at a time a balloon payment is due. In addition, payments of principal and interest made to service our debts, including balloon payments, may leave us with insufficient cash to pay the distributions that we are required to pay to maintain our qualification as a REIT.
The derivative instruments that we may use to hedge against interest rate fluctuations may not be successful in mitigating our risks associated with interest rates and could reduce the overall returns on our stockholders’ investment.
We may use derivative instruments to hedge exposure to changes in interest rates on certain of our variable rate loans, but no hedging strategy can protect us completely. We cannot assure our stockholders that our hedging strategy and the derivatives that we use will adequately offset the risk of interest rate volatility or that our hedging of these transactions will not result in losses. Any settlement charges incurred to terminate unused derivative instruments may result in increased interest expense, which may reduce the overall return on our investments. These instruments may also generate income that may not be treated as qualifying REIT income for purposes of the 75% or 95% REIT income tests.
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Failure to hedge effectively against interest rate changes may materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Subject to any limitations required to maintain qualification as a REIT, we manage or may seek to manage our exposure to interest rate volatility by using interest rate hedging arrangements, such as interest rate cap or collar agreements and interest rate swap agreements. These agreements involve risks, such as the risk that counterparties may fail to honor their obligations under these arrangements and that these arrangements may not be effective in reducing our exposure to interest rate changes. These interest rate hedging arrangements may create additional assets or liabilities from time to time that may be held or liquidated separately from the underlying property or loan for which they were originally established. Hedging may reduce the overall returns on our investments. Failure to hedge effectively against interest rate changes may materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
We assume the risk that our credit facility lenders may not honor their commitments to us.
We may enter into credit facility arrangements with lenders pursuant to which, subject to certain conditions, they commit to lend us money, provide us with letters of credit or provide other financial services to us. If we fail to comply with the covenants in such arrangements, the lenders could declare us in default, accelerate the maturities of our borrowings and refuse to make loans or provide other financial services to us. Or, if a lender becomes unable or unwilling to honor its commitments to us, we may not receive the loans and other financial services for which we negotiated. In such a situation, a replacement lender may be difficult or impossible to find quickly or at all. If we are unable to receive loans and other financial services, our liquidity and business could be negatively impacted.
If we were to use repurchase agreements to finance our securities investments, we may be exposed to risks that could result in losses.
We may use repurchase agreements as a form of leverage to finance our securities and loan investments, and the proceeds from repurchase agreements generally are invested in additional securities. There is a risk that the market value of the securities acquired from the proceeds received in connection with a repurchase agreement may decline below the price of the securities underlying the repurchase agreement that we have sold but remain obligated to repurchase. Repurchase agreements also involve the risk that the counterparty liquidates the securities we delivered to it under the repurchase agreements following the occurrence of an event of default under the applicable repurchase agreement by us. In addition, there is a risk that the market value of the securities we retain may decline. If the buyer of securities under a repurchase agreement were to file for bankruptcy or experience insolvency, we may be adversely affected. Furthermore, lenders may require us to provide additional margin in the form of cash, securities or other forms of collateral under the terms of the contract, and if we fail to resolve such margin calls when due, the lenders may exercise remedies, including taking ownership of the assets securing the applicable obligations. Also, in entering into repurchase agreements, we bear the risk of loss to the extent that the proceeds of the repurchase agreement are less than the value of the underlying securities. In addition, the interest costs associated with repurchase agreement transactions may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition, and, in some cases, we may be worse off than if we had not used such instruments.
RISKS RELATED TO INVESTMENTS IN REAL ESTATE-RELATED DEBT AND SECURITIES
The mortgage loans in which we may invest, either directly or indirectly through real estate-related debt securities, will be subject to the risk of delinquency, foreclosure and loss, which could result in losses to us.
Commercial mortgage loans are secured by commercial property and are subject to risks of delinquency and foreclosure and risks of loss. The ability of a borrower to repay a loan secured by a property typically is dependent primarily upon the successful operation of such property rather than upon the existence of independent income or assets of the borrower. If the net operating income of the property is reduced, the borrower’s ability to repay the loan may be impaired. Net operating income of an income producing property can be affected by, among other things: customer mix, success of customer businesses, property management decisions, property location and condition, competition from comparable types of properties, changes in laws that increase operating expenses or limit rents that may be charged, any need to address environmental contamination at the property, the occurrence of any uninsured casualty at the property, changes in national, regional or local economic conditions and/or specific industry segments, current and potential future capital markets uncertainty, declines in regional or local real estate values, declines in regional or local rental or occupancy rates, increases in interest rates, real estate tax rates and other operating expenses, changes in governmental rules, regulations and fiscal policies, including environmental legislation, natural disasters, terrorism, social unrest and civil disturbances.
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In the event of any default under a mortgage loan held directly by us, we will bear a risk of loss of principal to the extent of any realized deficiency between the value of the collateral and the principal and accrued interest of the mortgage loan, which could have a material adverse effect on our cash flow and limit amounts available for distribution to our stockholders. In the event of the bankruptcy of a mortgage loan borrower, the mortgage loan to such borrower will be deemed to be secured only to the extent of the value of the underlying collateral at the time of bankruptcy (as determined by the bankruptcy court), and the lien securing the mortgage loan will be subject to the avoidance powers of the bankruptcy trustee or debtor-in-possession to the extent the lien is unenforceable under state law. Foreclosure of a mortgage loan can be an expensive and lengthy process, which could have a substantial adverse effect on our anticipated return on the foreclosed mortgage loan. In addition, if we foreclose on a particular property, we could become, as owner of the property, subject to liabilities associated with such property, including liabilities related to taxes and environmental matters.
The mezzanine loans, B-notes, and other junior financings in which we may invest would involve greater risks of loss than senior loans secured by income-producing properties.
We may invest in mezzanine loans, B-notes, and other junior financings that substantially take the form of subordinated loans secured by second mortgages on the underlying property or loans secured by a pledge of the ownership interests of either the entity owning the property or the entity that owns the interest in the entity owning the property. These types of investments involve a higher degree of risk than senior mortgage lending secured by income producing property because the investment may become unsecured as a result of foreclosure by the senior lender. In the event of a bankruptcy of the entity providing the pledge of its ownership interests as security, we may not have full recourse to the assets of such entity, or the assets of the entity may not be sufficient to satisfy our mezzanine loan in whole or in part. In addition, there may be significant delays and costs associated with the process of foreclosing on collateral securing or supporting these investments. If a borrower defaults on our mezzanine loan or debt senior to our loan, or in the event of a borrower bankruptcy, our mezzanine loan will be satisfied only after the senior debt. As a result, we may not recover some or all of our investment. In addition, mezzanine loans may have higher loan-to-value ratios than conventional mortgage loans, resulting in less equity in the property and increasing the risk of loss of principal. Further, even if we are successful in foreclosing on the equity interests serving as collateral for certain mezzanine loans, such foreclosure could result in us inheriting all of the liabilities of the underlying mortgage borrower, including the senior mortgage on the applicable property. This may result in both increased costs to us and a negative impact on our overall debt covenants and occupancy levels. In many cases a significant restructuring of the senior mortgage may be required in order for us to be willing to retain longer term ownership of the property. If we are unsuccessful in restructuring the underlying mortgage debt in these scenarios, the mortgage lender ultimately may foreclose on the property causing us to lose any of our remaining investment.
The B-notes in which we may invest may be subject to additional risks relating to the privately negotiated structure and terms of the transaction, which may result in losses to us.
We may invest in B-notes. A B-note is a mortgage loan typically (i) secured by a first mortgage on a single large commercial property or group of related properties and (ii) subordinated to an A-note secured by the same first mortgage on the same collateral. As a result, if a borrower defaults, there may not be sufficient funds remaining for B-note holders after payment to the A-note holders. Since each transaction is privately negotiated, B-notes can vary in their structural characteristics and risks.
For example, the rights of holders of B-notes to control the process following a borrower default may be limited in certain B-note investments, particularly in situations where the A-note holders have the right to trigger an appraisal process pursuant to which control would shift from the holder of the B-note when it is determined, for instance, that a significant portion of the B-note is unlikely to be recovered. We cannot predict the terms of each B-note investment. Further, B-notes typically are secured by a single property, and, as a result, reflect the increased risks associated with a single property compared to a pool of properties. Our ownership of a B-note with controlling class rights may, in the event the financing fails to perform according to its terms, cause us to elect to pursue our remedies as owner of the B-note, which may include foreclosure on, or modification of, the note or the need to acquire or payoff the A-note. Acquiring or paying off the A-note could require a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash to be able to do so.
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Bridge loans may involve a greater risk of loss than conventional mortgage loans.
We may provide bridge loans secured by first lien mortgages on properties to borrowers who are typically seeking short-term capital to be used in an acquisition, development or refinancing of real estate. The borrower may have identified an undervalued asset that has been undermanaged or is located in a recovering market. If the market in which the asset is located fails to recover according to the borrower’s projections, or if the borrower fails to improve the quality of the asset’s management or the value of the asset, the borrower may not receive a sufficient return on the asset to satisfy the bridge loan, and we may not recover some or all of our investment.
In addition, owners usually borrow funds under a conventional mortgage loan to repay a bridge loan. We may, therefore, be dependent on a borrower’s ability to obtain permanent financing to repay our bridge loan, which could depend on market conditions and other factors. Bridge loans, like other loans secured directly or indirectly by property, are subject to risks of borrower defaults, bankruptcies, fraud, losses and special hazard losses that are not covered by standard hazard insurance. In the event of any default under bridge loans held by us, we bear the risk of loss of principal and nonpayment of interest and fees to the extent of any deficiency between the value of the mortgage collateral and the principal amount of the bridge loan. Any such losses with respect to our investments in bridge loans could have an adverse effect on our NAV, results of operations and financial condition.
Investment in non-conforming and non-investment grade loans may involve increased risk of loss.
Loans we may acquire or originate may not conform to conventional loan criteria applied by traditional lenders and may not be rated or may be rated as non-investment grade. Non-investment grade ratings for these loans typically result from the overall leverage of the loans, the lack of a strong operating history for the properties underlying the loans, the borrowers’ credit history, the properties’ underlying cash flow or other factors. As a result, loans we acquire or originate may have a higher risk of default and loss than conventional loans. Any loss we incur may reduce distributions to stockholders and adversely affect our value.
Risks of cost overruns and non-completion of the construction or renovation of the properties underlying loans we make or acquire may materially adversely affect our investment.
The renovation, refurbishment or expansion by a borrower of a mortgaged or leveraged property involves risks of cost overruns and non-completion. Costs of construction or improvements to bring a property up to standards established for the market intended for that property may exceed original estimates, possibly making a project uneconomical. Other risks may include: environmental risks, permitting risks, other construction risks and subsequent leasing of the property not being completed on schedule or at projected rental rates. If such construction or renovation is not completed in a timely manner, or if it costs more than expected, the borrower may experience a prolonged impairment of net operating income and may not be able to make payments of interest or principal to us.
Interest rate fluctuations, changes in prepayment rates and reinvestment risk could cause the value of our debt investments to decrease or could reduce our ability to generate income from such investments.
At such time as we may own debt investments, generally, when market interest rates rise, the market value of such investments will decline, and vice versa. Accordingly, the yield on our debt investments may be sensitive to changes in prevailing interest rates and corresponding changes in prepayment rates. Therefore, changes in interest rates may affect our net interest income, which is the difference between the interest income we earn on our interest-earning investments and the interest expense we incur in financing these investments. Interest rate fluctuations could also cause a borrower to prepay a mortgage loan more quickly than we expect, which could lead to our expected return on the investment being adversely affected. Further, there is a risk that income from our portfolio will decline if we invest the proceeds from matured, traded or called securities at market interest rates that are below our real estate debt portfolio’s current earnings rate. A decline in income could affect the NAV of our shares or their overall returns.
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Our debt investments may be considered illiquid and we may not be able to adjust our portfolio in response to changes in economic and other conditions.
The debt investments we may make in connection with privately negotiated transactions may not be registered under the relevant securities laws, resulting in a prohibition against their transfer, sale, pledge or other disposition except in a transaction that is exempt from the registration requirements of, or is otherwise registered in accordance with, those laws. As a result, our ability to vary our portfolio in response to changes in economic and other conditions may be relatively limited. The mezzanine, B-note and bridge loans we may originate or purchase in the future may be particularly illiquid investments due to their short life, their unsuitability for securitization and the greater difficulty of recovery in the event of a borrower’s default.
Delays in liquidating defaulted loans could reduce our investment returns.
If there are defaults under mortgage or other types of loans that we make, we may not be able to repossess and sell the underlying properties or equity collateral quickly. The resulting time delay could reduce the value of our investment in the defaulted loans. An action to foreclose on a property securing a loan is regulated by state statutes and regulations and is subject to many of the delays and expenses of other lawsuits if the defendant raises defenses or counterclaims. In the event of default by a mortgagor or other borrower, these restrictions, among other things, may impede our ability to foreclose on or sell the mortgaged property or other equity collateral or to obtain proceeds sufficient to repay all amounts due to us on the mortgage or other type of loan.
We may make investments in non-U.S. dollar denominated securities, which will be subject to currency rate exposure and risks associated with the uncertainty of foreign laws and markets.
Some of our real estate-related securities may be denominated in foreign currencies and, therefore, we expect to have currency risk exposure to any such foreign currencies. A change in foreign currency exchange rates may have an adverse impact on returns on our non-U.S. dollar denominated investments. Although we may hedge our foreign currency risk subject to the REIT income qualification tests, we may not be able to do so successfully and may incur losses on these investments as a result of exchange rate fluctuations. To the extent that we invest in non-U.S. dollar denominated securities, in addition to risks inherent in this investment in securities as generally discussed herein, we will also be subject to risks associated with the uncertainty of foreign laws and markets including, but not limited to, unexpected changes in regulatory requirements, political and economic instability in certain geographic locations, difficulties in managing international operations, currency exchange controls, potentially adverse tax consequences, additional accounting and control expenses and the administrative burden of complying with a wide variety of foreign laws.
Investments in real estate-related debt securities are subject to risks including various creditor risks and early redemption features which may materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
The debt securities and other interests in which we may invest may include secured or unsecured debt at various levels of an issuer’s capital structure. The debt securities in which we may invest may not be protected by financial covenants or limitations upon additional indebtedness, may be illiquid or have limited liquidity, and may not be rated by a credit rating agency. Debt securities are also subject to other creditor risks, including (i) the possible invalidation of an investment transaction as a “fraudulent conveyance” under relevant creditors’ rights laws, (ii) so-called lender liability claims by the issuer of the obligation and (iii) environmental liabilities that may arise with respect to collateral securing the obligations. Our investments may be subject to early redemption features, refinancing options, pre-payment options or similar provisions which, in each case, could result in the issuer repaying the principal on an obligation held by us earlier than expected, resulting in a lower return to us than anticipated or reinvesting in a new obligation at a lower return to us.
We will depend on debtors for our revenue, and, accordingly, our revenue and our ability to make distributions to our stockholders will be dependent upon the success and economic viability of such debtors.
The success of our real estate-related investments will materially depend on the financial stability of the debtors underlying such investments. The inability of a single major debtor or a number of smaller debtors to meet their payment obligations could result in reduced revenue or losses. In the event of a debtor default or bankruptcy, we may experience delays in enforcing our rights as a creditor, and such rights may be subordinated to the rights of other creditors. These events could negatively affect the cash available for distribution to our stockholders.
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We may invest in real estate-related preferred equity securities, which may involve a greater risk of loss than traditional debt financing.
We may invest in real estate-related preferred equity securities, which are currently volatile and which securities may involve a higher degree of risk than traditional debt financing due to a variety of factors, including that such investments are subordinate to traditional loans and are not secured. Furthermore, should the issuer default on our investment, we would only be able to proceed against the entity in which we have an interest, and not the property owned by such entity and underlying our investment. As a result, we may not recover some or all of our investment. Since there may be a number of debt obligations that have priority over our preferred stock investment, any determination by us to cure defaults could be costly and we may not have the cash to be able to do so. If we become the equity owner of the issuer, we would be responsible for other liabilities of the issuer, including liabilities relating to taxes and environmental matters.
Investments in real estate-related securities are subject to specific risks relating to the particular issuer of the securities and may be subject to the general risks of investing in subordinated real estate-related securities.
We may invest in real estate-related securities and our investments may consist of real estate-related common equity, preferred equity and debt securities of both publicly traded and private real estate companies. Our investments in such real estate-related securities will involve special risks relating to the particular issuer of the securities, including the financial condition and business outlook of the issuer. Issuers of real estate-related securities generally invest in real estate or real estate-related assets and are subject to the inherent risks associated with real estate-related debt investments discussed herein.
The value of real estate-related securities, including those of publicly listed REITs, fluctuates with general economic conditions. See “ –Debt-oriented real estate investments face a number of general market-related risks that can affect the creditworthiness of issuers, and modifications to certain loan structures and market terms make it more difficult to monitor and evaluate investments.”
Real estate-related securities may be unsecured and subordinated to other obligations of the issuer. As a result, investments in real estate-related securities are subject to risks of (i) limited liquidity in the secondary trading, (ii) substantial market price volatility, (iii) subordination to prior claims of banks and other senior lenders of the issuer and preferred equity holders (iv) the operation of mandatory sinking fund or call/redemption provisions during periods of declining interest rates that could cause the issuer to reinvest redemption proceeds in lower yielding assets, (v) the possibility that earnings of the issuer may be insufficient to meet its debt service and distribution obligations and (vi) the declining creditworthiness and potential for insolvency of the issuer during periods of rising interest rates and economic downturn. These risks may adversely affect the value of outstanding real estate-related securities and the ability of the issuers thereof to pay dividends.
We have and may in the future make open market purchases or invest in traded securities.
Although not anticipated to be a large component of our investment strategy, we have the ability to invest in securities that are traded (publicly or through other active markets (including through private transactions)) and are, therefore, subject to the risks inherent in investing in traded securities. When investing in traded securities, we may be unable to obtain financial covenants or other contractual governance rights, including management rights that we might otherwise be able to obtain in making privately negotiated investments. Moreover, we may not have the same access to information in connection with investments in traded securities, either when investigating a potential investment or after making the investment, as compared to privately negotiated investments. Furthermore, we may be limited in our ability to make investments, and to sell existing investments, in traded securities because Ares may be deemed to have material, non-public information regarding the issuers of those securities or as a result of other internal policies or requirements. The inability to sell traded securities in these circumstances could materially adversely affect the investment results. In addition, securities acquired of a public company may, depending on the circumstances and securities laws of the relevant jurisdiction, be subject to lock-up periods.
Debt-oriented real estate investments face a number of general market-related risks that can affect the creditworthiness of issuers, and modifications to certain loan structures and market terms make it more difficult to monitor and evaluate investments.
Any deterioration of real estate fundamentals generally, and in the United States in particular, could negatively impact our performance by making it more difficult for issuers to satisfy their debt payment obligations, increasing the default risk applicable to issuers, and/or by making it relatively more difficult for us to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns.
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Changes in general economic conditions will affect the creditworthiness of issuers and/or real estate collateral relating to our investments and may include economic and/or market fluctuations, changes in environmental and zoning laws, casualty or condemnation losses, regulatory limitations on rents, decreases in property values, changes in the appeal of properties to tenants, changes in supply and demand for competing properties in an area (as a result, for instance, of overbuilding), fluctuations in real estate fundamentals, the financial resources of tenants, changes in availability of debt financing which may render the sale or refinancing of properties difficult or impracticable, changes in building, environmental and other laws, energy and supply shortages, various uninsured or uninsurable risks, natural disasters, political events, trade barriers, currency exchange controls, changes in government regulations, changes in real property tax rates and operating expenses, changes in interest rates, changes in the availability of debt financing and/or mortgage funds which may render the sale or refinancing of properties difficult or impracticable, increased mortgage defaults, increases in borrowing rates, outbreaks of an infectious disease, epidemics/pandemics or other serious public health concerns, negative developments in the economy or political climate that depress travel activity, environmental liabilities, contingent liabilities on disposition of assets, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, war, demand and/or real estate values generally. Such changes may develop rapidly and it may be difficult to determine the comprehensive impact of such changes on our investments, particularly for investments that may have inherently limited liquidity. These changes may also create significant volatility in the markets for our investments which could cause rapid and large fluctuations in the values of such investments. There can be no assurance that there will be a ready market for the resale of our debt investments because such investments may not be liquid. Illiquidity may result from the absence of an established market for the investments, as well as legal or contractual restrictions on their resale by us. The value of securities of companies which service the real estate business sector may also be affected by such risks.
We cannot predict whether economic conditions generally, and the conditions for real estate debt investing in particular, will deteriorate in the future. Declines in the performance of the U.S. and global economies or in the real estate debt markets could have a material adverse effect on our investment activities. In addition, market conditions relating to real estate debt investments have evolved since the financial crisis, which has resulted in a modification to certain loan structures and market terms. For example, it has become increasingly difficult for real estate debt investors in certain circumstances to receive full transparency with respect to underlying investments because transactions are often effectuated on an indirect basis through pools or conduit vehicles rather than directly with the borrower. These and other similar changes in loan structures or market terms may make it more difficult for us to monitor and evaluate investments.
Political changes may affect the real estate debt markets.
The current regulatory environment in the United States may be impacted by future legislative developments and the regulatory agenda of the then-current U.S. President.
The outcome of congressional and other elections creates uncertainty with respect to legal, tax and regulatory regimes in which we and our investments will operate. Any significant changes in, among other things, economic policy (including with respect to interest rates and foreign trade), the regulation of the investment management industry, tax law, immigration policy and/or government entitlement programs could have a material adverse impact on us and our investments.
Some of our securities investments may become distressed, which securities would have a high risk of default and may be illiquid.
While it is generally anticipated that our real estate-related investments will focus primarily on investments in non-distressed real estate-related interests (based on our belief that there is not a low likelihood of repayment), our investments may become distressed following our acquisition thereof. Additionally, we may invest in real estate debt investments that we believe are available to purchase at “discounted” rates or “undervalued” prices. Purchasing real estate debt at what may appear to be “undervalued” or “discounted” levels is no guarantee that these investments will generate attractive returns to us or will not be subject to further reductions in value. There is no assurance that such investments can be acquired at favorable prices, that such investments will not default, or that the market for such interests will improve. In addition, the market conditions for real estate debt investments may deteriorate further, which could have an adverse effect on the performance of our investments.
During an economic downturn or recession, securities of financially troubled or operationally troubled issuers are more likely to go into default than securities of other issuers. Securities of financially troubled issuers and operationally troubled issuers are less liquid and more volatile than securities of companies not experiencing financial difficulties. The market prices of such securities are subject to erratic and abrupt market movements and the spread between bid and asked prices
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may be greater than normally expected. Investment in the securities of financially troubled issuers and operationally troubled issuers involves a high degree of credit and market risk. There is no assurance that we will correctly evaluate the value of the assets collateralizing such investments or the prospects for a successful reorganization or similar action.
These financial difficulties may never be overcome and may cause issuers to become subject to bankruptcy or other similar administrative proceedings, or may require a substantial amount of workout negotiations or restructuring, which may entail, among other things, an extension of the term, a substantial reduction in the interest rate, a substantial write down of the principal of such investment and other concessions which could adversely affect our returns on the investment. There is a possibility that we may incur substantial or total losses on our investments and in certain circumstances, subject us to certain additional potential liabilities that may exceed the value of our original investment therein.
For example, under certain circumstances, a lender who has inappropriately exercised control over the management and policies of a debtor may have its claims subordinated or disallowed or may be found liable for damages suffered by parties as a result of such actions. In any reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to our investments, we may lose our entire investment, may be required to accept cash or securities with a value less than our original investment and/or may be required to accept different terms, including payment over an extended period of time. In addition, payments to us may be reclaimed under certain circumstances if any such payment or distribution is later determined to have been a fraudulent conveyance, preferential payment, or similar transactions under applicable bankruptcy and insolvency laws. Furthermore, bankruptcy laws and similar laws applicable to administrative proceedings may delay our ability to realize on collateral for loan positions we held, or may adversely affect the economic terms and priority of such loans through doctrines such as equitable subordination or may result in a restructure of the debt through principles such as the “cramdown” provisions of the bankruptcy laws.
However, even if a restructuring were successfully accomplished, a risk exists that, upon maturity of such investment, replacement “takeout” financing will not be available, resulting in an inability by the issuer to repay the investment. Although unlikely, it is possible it may be necessary or desirable to foreclose on collateral securing one or more real estate debt we acquire. The foreclosure process varies jurisdiction by jurisdiction and can be lengthy and expensive. Issuers often resist foreclosure actions by asserting numerous claims, counterclaims and defenses against the holder of a real estate loan, including, without limitation, lender liability claims and defenses, even when such assertions may have no basis in fact, in an effort to prolong the foreclosure action, which often prolongs and complicates an already difficult and time-consuming process. In some states or other jurisdictions, foreclosure actions can take up to several years or more to conclude. During the foreclosure proceedings, an issuer may have the ability to file for bankruptcy, potentially staying the foreclosure action and further delaying the foreclosure process. Foreclosure litigation tends to create a negative public image of the collateral property and may result in disrupting ongoing leasing, management, development and other operations of the property. In the event we foreclose on an investment, we will be subject to the risks associated with owning and operating real estate.
Investments in structured products or similar products may include structural, legal and liquidity risks that may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
We may invest from time to time in structured products, including pools of mortgages, inclusive of commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”) secured by loans made to multiple entities and/or single asset single borrower (“SASB”) loans, as well as other real estate-related interests. Our investments in structured products are subject to a number of risks, including risks related to the fact that the structured products may be leveraged, and other structural and legal risks related thereto. Utilization of leverage is a speculative investment technique and will generally magnify the opportunities for gain and risk of loss borne by an investor investing in debt securities. Many structured products contain covenants designed to protect the providers of debt financing to such structured products. A failure to satisfy those covenants could result in the untimely liquidation of the structured product and a complete loss of our investment therein. In addition, if the particular structured product is invested in a security in which we are also separately invested, this would tend to increase our overall exposure to the credit of the issuer of such securities, at least on an absolute, if not on a relative basis. The value of an investment in a structured product will depend on the investment performance of the assets in which the structured product invests and will, therefore be subject to all of the risks associated with an investment in those assets. These risks include the possibility of a default by, or bankruptcy of, the issuers of such assets or a claim that the pledging of collateral to secure any such asset constituted a fraudulent conveyance or preferential transfer that can be subordinated to the rights of other creditors of the issuer of such asset or nullified under applicable law.
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The credit markets, including the CMBS market, have periodically experienced decreased liquidity on the primary and secondary markets during periods of increased market volatility. Such market conditions could re-occur and could impact the valuations of our investments and impair our ability to sell such investments if we were required to liquidate all or a portion of our CMBS investments quickly. Additionally, certain of our securities investments, such as horizontal or other risk retention investments in CMBS, may have certain holding period and other restrictions that limit our ability to sell such investments.
Certain risks associated with CMBS may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
We invest a portion of our assets in pools or tranches of CMBS, including horizontal and other risk retention investments. The collateral underlying CMBS generally consists of commercial mortgages on real property that has an industrial use. CMBS have been issued in a variety of issuances, with varying structures including senior and subordinated classes.
Mortgage-backed securities may also have structural characteristics that distinguish them from other securities. The interest rate payable on these types of securities may be set or effectively capped at the weighted average net coupon of the underlying assets themselves. As a result of this cap, the return to investors in such a security would be dependent on the relevant timing and rate of delinquencies and prepayments of mortgage loans bearing a higher rate of interest. In general, early prepayments will have a greater impact on the yield to investors. Federal and state law may also affect the return to investors by capping the interest rates payable by certain mortgagors. Certain mortgage-backed securities may provide for the payment of only interest for a stated period of time. In addition, in a bankruptcy or similar proceeding involving the originator or the servicer of the CMBS (often the same entity or an affiliate), the assets of the issuer of such securities could be treated as never having been truly sold to the originator to the issuer and could be substantively consolidated with those of the originator, or the transfer of such assets to the issuer could be voided as a fraudulent transfer.
The credit markets, including the CMBS market, have periodically experienced decreased liquidity on the primary and secondary markets during periods of market volatility. Such market conditions could re-occur and would impact the valuations of our investments and impair our ability to sell such investments if we were required to liquidate all or a portion of our CMBS investments quickly. Additionally, certain of our securities investments, such as horizontal or other risk retention investments in CMBS, may have certain holding period and other restrictions that limit our ability to sell such investments.
Concentrated CMBS investments may pose specific risks that may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Default risks with respect to CMBS investments may be further pronounced in the case of single-issuer CMBS or CMBS secured by a small or less diverse collateral pool, such as SASB loans. At any one time, a portfolio of CMBS may be backed by commercial mortgage loans disproportionately secured by properties in only a few states, regions or foreign countries. As a result, such investments may be more susceptible to geographic risks relating to such areas, including adverse economic conditions, declining home values, adverse events affecting industries located in such areas and other factors beyond our control relative to investments in multi-issuer CMBS or a pool of mortgage loans having more diverse property locations.
The quality of the CMBS is dependent on the credit quality and selection of the mortgages for each issuance.
CMBS are also affected by the quality of the credit extended. As a result, the quality of the CMBS is dependent upon the selection of the commercial mortgages for each issuance and the cash flow generated by the commercial real estate assets, as well as the relative diversification of the collateral pool underlying such CMBS and other factors such as adverse selection within a particular tranche or issuance.
Our CMBS investments face risks associated with extensions that may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Our CMBS and other investments may be subject to extension, resulting in the term of the securities being longer than expected. Extensions are affected by a number of factors, including the general availability of financing in the market, the value of the related mortgaged property, the borrower’s equity in the mortgaged property, the financial circumstances of the borrower, fluctuations in the business operated by the borrower on the mortgaged property, competition, general economic conditions and other factors. Such extensions may also be made without our consent.
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There are certain risks associated with the servicers of commercial real estate loans underlying CMBS and other investments.
The exercise of remedies and successful realization of liquidation proceeds relating to commercial real estate loans underlying CMBS and other investments may be highly dependent on the performance of the servicer or special servicer. The servicer may not be appropriately staffed or compensated to immediately address issues or concerns with the underlying loans. Such servicers may exit the business and need to be replaced, which could have a negative impact on the portfolio due to lack of focus during a transition. Special servicers frequently are affiliated with investors who have purchased the most subordinate bond classes, and certain servicing actions, such as a loan extension instead of forcing a borrower pay off, may benefit the subordinate bond classes more so than the senior bonds. While servicers are obligated to service the portfolio subject to a servicing standard and maximize the present value of the loans for all bond classes, servicers with an affiliate investment in the CMBS or other investments may have a conflict of interest. There may be a limited number of special servicers available, particularly those which do not have conflicts of interest. In addition, to the extent any such servicers fail to effectively perform their obligations pursuant to the applicable servicing agreements, such failure may adversely affect our investments.
There are certain risks associated with CMBS interest shortfalls.
Our CMBS investments may be subject to interest shortfalls due to interest collected from the underlying loans not being sufficient to pay accrued interest to all of the CMBS interest holders. Interest shortfalls to the CMBS trust will occur when the servicer does not advance full interest payments on defaulted loans. The servicer in a CMBS trust is required to advance monthly principal and interest payments due on a delinquent loan. Once a loan is delinquent for a period of time (generally 60 days), the servicer is required to obtain a new appraisal to determine the value of the property securing the loan. The servicer is only required to advance interest based on the lesser of the loan amount or 90%, generally, of the appraised value. Interest shortfalls occur when 90%, generally, of the appraised value is less than the loan amount and the servicer does not advance interest on the full loan amount. The resulting interest shortfalls impact interest payments on the most junior class in the trust first. As interest shortfalls increase, more senior classes may be impacted. Over time, senior classes may be reimbursed for accumulated shortfalls if the delinquent loans are resolved, but there is no guarantee that shortfalls will be collected. Interest shortfalls to the CMBS trust may also occur as a result of accumulated advances and expenses on defaulted loans. When a defaulted loan or foreclosed property is liquidated, the servicer will be reimbursed for accumulated advances and expenses prior to payments to CMBS bond holders. If proceeds are insufficient to reimburse the servicer or if a defaulted loan is modified and not foreclosed, the servicer is able to make a claim on interest payments that is senior to the bond holders to cover accumulated advances and expenses. If the claim is greater than interest collected on the loans, interest shortfalls could impact one or more bond classes in a CMBS trust until the servicer’s claim is satisfied.
There are certain risks associated with the insolvency of obligations backing CMBS and other investments.
The real estate loans backing our CMBS and other investments may be subject to various laws enacted in the jurisdiction or state of the borrower for the protection of creditors. If an unpaid creditor files a lawsuit seeking payment, the court may invalidate all or part of the borrower’s debt as a fraudulent conveyance, subordinate such indebtedness to existing or future creditors of the borrower or recover amounts previously paid by the borrower in satisfaction of such indebtedness, based on certain tests for borrower insolvency and other facts and circumstances, which may vary by jurisdiction. There can be no assurance as to what standard a court would apply in order to determine whether the borrower was “insolvent” after giving effect to the incurrence of the indebtedness constituting the mortgage backing the CMBS and other investments, or that regardless of the method of valuation, a court would not determine that the borrower was “insolvent” after giving effect to such incurrence. In addition, in the event of the insolvency of a borrower, payments made on such mortgage loans could be subject to avoidance as a “preference” if made within a certain period of time (which may be as long as one year and one day) before insolvency.
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We will face “spread widening” risk related to our investment in securities.
For reasons not necessarily attributable to any of the risks set forth herein (for example, supply/demand imbalances or other market forces), the market spreads of the securities in which we invest may increase substantially causing the securities prices to fall. It may not be possible to predict, or to hedge against, such “spread widening” risk. The perceived discount in pricing described under “—Some of our securities investments may become distressed, which securities would have a high risk of default and may be illiquid.” may still not reflect the true value of the real estate assets underlying such real estate debt in which we may invest, and therefore further deterioration in value with respect thereto may occur following our investment therein. In addition, mark-to-market accounting of our investments will have an interim effect on the reported value prior to realization of an investment.
Absent our ability to rely upon available guidance from the CFTC that we are not a commodity pool, we, our board of directors or the Advisor, would be subject to additional regulation and required to comply with applicable CFTC disclosure, reporting, and record-keeping requirements.
Registration with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) as a “commodity pool operator” or any change in our operations (including, without limitation, any change that causes us to be subject to certain specified covered statutory disqualifications) necessary to maintain our ability to rely upon CFTC Letter No. 12-13 or other exclusion from the definition of, or exemption from the requirement to register as, a “commodity pool operator” with the CFTC could adversely affect our ability to implement our investment program, conduct our operations or achieve our objectives and subject us to certain additional costs, expenses and administrative burdens. Furthermore, any determination by us to cease or to limit trading in interests that may be treated as “commodity interests” in order to comply with the regulations of the CFTC may have an adverse effect on our ability to implement our investment objectives and to hedge risks associated with our operations.
RISKS RELATED TO THE ADVISOR AND ITS AFFILIATES
Our Advisor faces conflicts of interest because certain of the fees it receives for services performed are based on our NAV, the procedures for which the Advisor will assist our board of directors in developing, overseeing, implementing and coordinating.
The Advisor assists our board of directors in developing, overseeing, implementing and coordinating our NAV procedures. It will assist our Independent Valuation Advisor in valuing our real property portfolio by providing the firm with property-level information, including (i) historical and projected operating revenues and expenses of the property; (ii) lease agreements on the property; and (iii) the revenues and expenses of the property. Our Independent Valuation Advisor assumes and relies upon the accuracy and completeness of all such information, does not undertake any duty or responsibility to verify independently any of such information and relies upon us and our Advisor to advise if any material information previously provided becomes inaccurate or was required to be updated during the period of its review. In addition, the Advisor may have some discretion with respect to valuations of certain assets and liabilities, which could affect our NAV. Because the Advisor is paid certain fees for its services based on our NAV, the Advisor could be motivated to influence our NAV and NAV procedures such that they result in an NAV exceeding realizable value, due to the impact of higher valuations on the compensation to be received by the Advisor. If our NAV is calculated in a way that is not reflective of our actual NAV, then the purchase price of shares of our common stock on a given date may not accurately reflect the value of our portfolio, and our stockholder’s shares may be worth less than the purchase price.
Advisory fees may not create proper incentives or may induce the Advisor and its affiliates to make certain investments, including speculative investments, that increase the risk of our real estate portfolio.
The advisory fees we pay the Advisor are made up of a fixed component and a performance component. We will pay the Advisor the fixed component regardless of the performance of our portfolio. The Advisor’s entitlement to the fixed component, which is not based upon performance metrics or goals, might reduce its incentive to devote its time and effort to seeking investments that provide attractive risk-adjusted returns for our portfolio. We will be required to pay the Advisor the fixed component in a particular period despite experiencing a net loss or a decline in the value of our portfolio during that period. The performance component, which is based on our total distributions plus the change in NAV per share, may create an incentive for the Advisor to make riskier or more speculative investments on our behalf than it would otherwise make in the absence of such performance-based compensation.
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The Advisor’s management personnel, other employees and affiliates face conflicts of interest relating to time management and, accordingly, the Advisor’s management personnel, other employees and affiliates may not be able to devote significant time to our business activities and the Advisor may not be able to hire adequate additional employees.
All of the Advisor’s management personnel, other personnel, affiliates and related parties may also provide services to other Sponsor affiliated entities and related parties. We are not able to estimate the amount of time that such management personnel, other personnel, affiliates and related parties will devote to our business. As a result, the Advisor’s management personnel, other personnel, affiliates and related parties may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time between our business and their other activities, which may include advising and managing various other real estate programs and ventures, which may be numerous and may change as programs are closed or new programs are formed. During times of significant activity in other programs and ventures, the time they devote to our business may decline. Accordingly, there is a risk that the Advisor’s affiliates and related parties may not devote significant time to our business activities and the Advisor may not be able to hire adequate additional personnel.
The Advisor and its affiliates, including our officers and three of our directors, face conflicts of interest caused by compensation arrangements with us, and other entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of our Sponsor, which could result in actions that are not in our stockholders’ best interests.
Our executive officers, three of our directors and other key personnel are also officers, directors, managers, and key personnel of the Advisor, the Dealer Manager and/or other entities related to our Sponsor. Our Advisor and its affiliates receive substantial fees from us in return for their services and these fees could influence their advice to us. Among other matters, the compensation arrangements could affect their judgment with respect to:
• the continuation, renewal or enforcement of our agreements with the Advisor and its affiliates, including the Advisory Agreement and the agreement with the Dealer Manager;
• recommendations to our board of directors with respect to developing, overseeing, implementing and coordinating our NAV procedures, or the decision to adjust the value of certain of our assets or liabilities if the Advisor is responsible for valuing them;
• offerings of equity by us, which may result in increased fees for the Advisor and other related parties;
• competition for customers from entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of our Sponsor that own properties in the same geographic area as us; and
• investments through joint ventures or other co-ownership arrangements, which may result in increased fees for the Advisor.
We will be responsible for our proportionate share of certain fees and expenses, including due diligence costs, as determined by our Advisor, including legal, accounting and financial advisor fees and related costs, incurred in connection with evaluating and consummating investment opportunities, regardless of whether such transactions are ultimately consummated by the parties thereto.
In addition, we reimburse the Advisor and its affiliates for the salaries and other compensation of its personnel in accordance with the Advisory Agreement based on the percentage of such personnel’s time spent on our affairs. Pursuant to the terms of our Advisory Agreement, we reimburse our Advisor and its affiliates for personnel (and related employment) costs and overhead (including, but not limited to, allocated rent paid, equipment, utilities, insurance, travel and entertainment, and other costs) incurred by the Advisor or its affiliates in performing the services under the Advisory Agreement, including, but not limited to, total compensation, benefits and other overhead of all employees involved in the performance of such services; provided, that we will not reimburse the Advisor or its affiliates for services for which the Advisor or its affiliates are entitled to compensation in the form of a separate fee.
Certain of our service providers may also provide services to or have business, personal, political, financial or other relationships with the Sponsor or other Sponsor affiliated entities and related parties. These relationships have the potential to include us and the Advisor in deciding whether to select or recommend such a service provider to perform services for us, whether to cause us to invest in investment opportunities sourced by such a service provider or whether to select such a service provider as a co-investor or counterparty in a transaction. Considerations relating to compensation to our Advisor and its affiliates from us and other entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of our Sponsor could result in decisions that
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are not in our stockholders’ best interests, which could hurt our ability to pay our stockholders distributions or result in a decline in the value of our stockholders’ investment. Conflicts of interest such as those described above have contributed to stockholder litigation against certain other externally managed REITs that are not affiliated with our Advisor or the Sponsor.
Our Advisor may manage other investment vehicles (including public, non-listed REITs) that have investment objectives that compete or overlap with, and may from time to time invest in, our target asset classes.
Affiliates of our Advisor may manage other investment vehicles (including public, non-listed REITs) that have investment objectives that compete or overlap with, and may from time to time invest in, our target asset classes. This may apply to existing investment vehicles or investment vehicles that may be organized, or with respect to which affiliates of our Advisor may acquire and assume the role of management in the future. Consequently, we, on the one hand, and these other investment vehicles, on the other hand, may from time to time pursue the same or similar investment opportunities. To the extent such existing vehicles or other future investment vehicles managed by our Advisor or its affiliates seek to acquire the same target assets as the Company, the scope of opportunities otherwise available to us may be adversely affected and/or reduced. Our Advisor or its affiliates may also give advice to investment vehicles managed by our Advisor or its affiliates that may differ from the advice given to us even though their investment objectives may be the same or similar to ours.
The time and resources that Sponsor affiliated entities and related parties devote to us may be diverted and we may face additional competition due to the fact that Sponsor affiliated entities and related parties are not prohibited from raising money for another entity that makes the same types of investments that we target.
Sponsor affiliated entities and related parties are not prohibited from raising money for another investment entity that makes the same types of investments as those we target. As a result, the time and resources they could devote to us may be diverted. For example, the Dealer Manager is currently involved in other offerings for one other entity sponsored by the Sponsor. In addition, we may compete with other entities sponsored or advised by the Sponsor or affiliates of the Sponsor for the same investors and investment opportunities.
We may co-invest or joint venture an investment with a Sponsor affiliated entity or related party.
We have entered into and in the future may enter into additional joint ventures, co-investment or other arrangements with affiliates of the Sponsor or entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor to acquire, develop and/or manage property, debt and other investments. Such investments may raise potential conflicts of interest between us and such other investment vehicles managed by our Advisor or its affiliates, including determining which of such entities should enter into any particular joint venture, co-investment or other arrangement agreement. Joint venture, co-investment or other arrangement partners affiliated with the Advisor or sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor may have economic or business interests or goals which are or may become inconsistent with our business interests or goals. In addition, should any such joint venture, co-investment or other arrangement be consummated, the Advisor and its affiliates may face a conflict in structuring the terms of the relationship between our interests and the interests of other parties, in managing the joint venture, co-investment or other arrangement, and in resolving any conflicts or exercising any rights in connection with the joint venture, co-investment or other arrangement. Since the Advisor will make various decisions on our behalf, agreements and transactions between us and the Advisor’s affiliates or entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor will not have the benefit of arm’s-length negotiations of the type normally conducted between unrelated parties. Furthermore, when such other investment vehicles managed by our Advisor or its affiliates have interests or requirements that do not align with our interests, including differing liquidity needs or desired investment horizons, conflicts may arise in the manner in which any voting or control rights are exercised with respect to the relevant investment, potentially resulting in an adverse impact on us. Ares has adopted a co-investment policy designed to ensure the fair allocation of co-investment opportunities, including compliance with applicable regulatory requirements as well as contractual obligations under the applicable governing documents of other entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of Ares. In exercising their discretion to allocate co-investment opportunities with respect to a particular investment to and among potential co-investors and the terms thereof, Ares, the Advisor and their respective affiliates, in a manner consistent with the co-investment policy, are permitted to consider some or all of a wide range of factors, including, but not limited to, strategic advantages that may result from a potential co-investor’s participation in a co-investment opportunity, whether a potential co-investor has the requisite resources to evaluate and make the investment, and the tax and legal characteristics of a potential investment or a potential co-investor.
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In addition to the limitations described above, we may enter into joint ventures with affiliates of the Sponsor or entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Sponsor for the acquisition of investments only if (i) a majority of our directors not otherwise interested in the transaction, including a majority of the independent directors, approve the transaction as being fair and reasonable to us and (ii) the investment by us and such affiliate are on terms and conditions that are no less favorable than those that would be available to unaffiliated parties.
With respect to any joint venture, we may enter into an advisory or sub-advisory agreement with an affiliate of the Advisor. We may also enter into arrangements with the Advisor in which the Advisor receives fees (directly or indirectly, including through a subsidiary of ours) from the joint venture entity or from the joint venture partner. Fees received from joint venture entities or partners and paid, directly or indirectly (including without limitation, through us or our subsidiaries), to the Advisor may be more or less than similar fees that we pay to the Advisor pursuant to the Advisory Agreement.
In addition, the Advisor may, with respect to any investment in which we are a participant, also render advice and service to others in that investment, and earn fees for rendering such advice and service. Specifically, it is contemplated that we may enter into joint venture or other similar co-investment arrangements with certain individuals, corporations, partnerships, trusts, joint ventures, limited liability companies or other entities, with respect to which the Advisor or one of its affiliates may be engaged to provide advice and service to such individuals, corporations, partnerships, trusts, joint ventures, limited liability companies or other entities. The Advisor or its affiliate will earn fees for rendering such advice and service pursuant to the agreements governing such joint ventures or arrangements.
We may invest in, acquire, sell assets to or provide financing to investment vehicles managed by our Advisor or its affiliates.
We may invest in, acquire, sell assets to or provide financing to investment vehicles managed by our Advisor or its affiliates and their portfolio companies or purchase assets from, sell assets to, or arrange financing from any such investment vehicles and their portfolio companies. Any such transactions will require approval by a majority of our independent directors. There can be no assurance that any procedural protections will be sufficient to ensure that these transactions will be made on terms that will be at least as favorable to us as those that would have been obtained in an arm’s-length transaction.
Given the significant number of investment vehicles managed by the Advisor or its affiliates, we may face conflicts of interest when determining whether to pursue a transaction with such investment vehicles or their portfolio companies, which could limit our ability to pursue transactions that are otherwise suitable for us.
The Advisor and its affiliates manage many other investment vehicles and from time to time we may identify an investment opportunity or other transaction where the counterparty is one of those vehicles, one of their portfolio companies, or another entity in which they own an interest. Although the opportunity or transaction may be otherwise suitable for us and consistent with our investment strategy, we may determine not to pursue the transaction due to the potential conflict of interest. Therefore, there can be no assurance that we will pursue all potentially suitable transactions and investment opportunities that come to our attention.
We depend on the Advisor and its key personnel; if any of such key personnel were to cease employment with the Advisor or its affiliates, our business could suffer.
Our ability to make distributions and achieve our investment objectives is dependent upon the performance of the Advisor in the acquisition, disposition and management of our investments, the selection of customers for our properties, the determination of any financing arrangements and other factors. In addition, our success depends to a significant degree upon the continued contributions of certain of the Advisor’s key personnel, including, in alphabetical order, William S. Benjamin, Gregg P. Boehm, Martin A. Edmondson, David M. Fazekas, Jay W. Glaubach, Andrew E. Holm, Brian R. Lange, Taylor M. Paul, David A. Roth, Julie B. Solomon, Jeffrey W. Taylor, and Joshua J. Widoff, each of whom would be difficult to replace. We currently do not have, nor do we expect to obtain, key man life insurance on any of the Advisor’s key personnel. If the Advisor were to lose the benefit of the experience, efforts and abilities of one or more of these individuals through their resignation, retirement, or due to an internalization transaction effected by another investment program sponsored by the Sponsor or its affiliates, or due to such individuals becoming otherwise unavailable because of other activities on behalf of the Sponsor or its affiliates, our operating results could suffer. In addition, our operating results could suffer as a result of any misconduct by any of these individuals.
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Our Advisor is subject to extensive regulation as an investment adviser, which could adversely affect its ability to manage our business.
Our Advisor is subject to regulation as an investment adviser by various regulatory authorities that are charged with protecting the interests of its clients, including us. Instances of criminal activity and fraud by participants in the investment management industry and disclosures of trading and other abuses by participants in the financial services industry have led the United States Government and regulators to increase the rules and regulations governing, and oversight of, the United States financial system. This activity resulted in changes to the laws and regulations governing the investment management industry and more aggressive enforcement of the existing laws and regulations. Our Advisor could be subject to civil liability, criminal liability, or sanction, including revocation of its registration as an investment adviser, revocation of the licenses of its employees, censures, fines, or temporary suspension or permanent bar from conducting business, if it is found to have violated any of these laws or regulations. Any such liability or sanction could adversely affect our Advisor’s ability to manage our business. Our Advisor must continually address conflicts between its interests and those of its clients, including us. Our Advisor has procedures and controls that are reasonably designed to address these issues. However, appropriately dealing with conflicts of interest is complex and difficult and if our Advisor fails, or appears to fail, to deal appropriately with conflicts of interest, it could face litigation or regulatory proceedings or penalties, any of which could adversely affect its ability to manage our business.
The fees we pay to entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of our Sponsor in connection with our offerings of securities and in connection with the management of our investments were not determined on an arm’s-length basis, and therefore, we do not have the benefit of arm’s-length negotiations of the type normally conducted between unrelated parties.
The Advisor, affiliates of the Advisor and the Dealer Manager have earned and will continue to earn fees, performance allocations, commissions and expense reimbursements from us. The fees, performance allocations, commissions and expense reimbursements paid and to be paid to the Advisor, affiliates of the Advisor and the Dealer Manager for services they provided us in connection with past offerings and in connection with our current securities offering were not determined on an arm’s-length basis. As a result, the fees have been determined without the benefit of arm’s-length negotiations of the type normally conducted between unrelated parties.
We compete with entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Advisor, for whom affiliates of the Advisor provide certain advisory or management services, for opportunities to acquire, lease, finance, or sell investments, and for customers, which may have an adverse impact on our operations.
We compete with entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Advisor and may compete with any such entity created in the future, as well as entities for whom affiliates of the Advisor provide certain advisory or management services, for opportunities to acquire, lease, finance or sell certain types of properties. We may also buy, lease, finance or sell properties at the same time as these entities are buying, leasing, financing or selling properties. In this regard, there is a risk that we will purchase or lend on a property that provides lower returns to us than a property purchased or lent on by entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Advisor and entities for whom affiliates of the Advisor provide certain advisory or management services. Certain entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Advisor own and/or manage properties in geographical areas in which we expect to own properties. Therefore, our properties may compete for customers with other properties owned and/or managed by these entities. The Advisor may face conflicts of interest when evaluating customer leasing opportunities for our properties and other properties owned and/or managed by these entities and these conflicts of interest may have a negative impact on our ability to attract and retain customers.
The Advisor has implemented lease allocation guidelines to assist with the process of the allocation of leases when we and certain other entities to which affiliates of the Advisor are providing certain advisory services have potentially competing properties with respect to a particular customer. These guidelines, are designed to allow, where possible, each fund with a potentially competing property to bid on a lease with a prospective customer in a fair and equitable manner.
Because affiliates of the Advisor currently sponsor and advise, and in the future may sponsor and advise, other investment vehicles and clients (each, an “Advisory Client”) with overlapping investment objectives, strategies and criteria, potential conflicts of interest may arise with respect to real estate investment opportunities. In order to manage this potential conflict of interest, in allocating opportunities among the Advisory Clients, the Advisor follows an allocation policy (the “Allocation Policy”) which endeavors to allocate investment opportunities in a fair and equitable manner. The Advisor’s Allocation Policy, which may be amended without consent, is intended to enable us to share equitably with any other Advisory Clients that are managed by the Advisor and competing with us to acquire similar types of assets.
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Under the Allocation Policy, real estate investments will be considered for Advisory Clients based on appropriateness and conformity with their respective investment objectives, as well as the suitability of the investment for each Advisory Client. Suitability is determined by a variety of factors related to the investment mandates of each Advisory Client, the nature of the investment opportunity and the composition of each client’s portfolio. In the circumstance where an investment is suitable for only one Advisory Client based on such factors, the investment will be allocated to that Advisory Client. Where an investment is suitable for more than one Advisory Client, the Advisor generally employs an allocation rotation process pursuant to the Allocation Policy that is designed to facilitate an equitable allocation of such opportunities over time. Nevertheless, it is possible that we may not be given the opportunity to participate in certain investments made by Advisory Clients managed by affiliates of the Advisor. In addition, the Advisor has and may from time to time limit the number of positions in a rotation and/or grant to certain Advisory Clients certain exclusivity, rotation or other priority (each, a “Rotational Priority”) with respect to industrial investments or other investment opportunities. This means that, depending on the number of Advisory Clients and number of positions in each such rotation and/or the Rotational Priorities that have been granted, we may be offered fewer investment opportunities. The Advisor or its affiliates may grant additional Rotational Priorities in the future and from time to time.
The ability of the Advisor to effect or recommend transactions is in certain cases restricted by applicable laws or regulatory requirements in or of the United States (including without limitation under the Investment Company Act) or elsewhere that are applicable to the Advisor, the Sponsor, and other investment vehicles sponsored or advised by the Advisor, the Sponsor or affiliates of the Advisor or the Sponsor. In addition, the Advisor, the Sponsor or their affiliates have adopted or are expected to adopt policies designed to comply with such laws or requirements and may vary or supplement such policies in the future. Accordingly, we may be subject to restrictions applicable to any potential co-investments alongside, or investments in portfolio companies or prospective portfolio companies of other vehicles sponsored or advised by the Advisor, the Sponsor or affiliates of the Advisor and the Sponsor, including regulated funds.
The Advisor may modify its overall allocation policies from time to time. Any changes to the Advisor’s allocation policies will be timely reported to our board of directors or our Conflicts Resolution Committee. The Advisor will be required to provide information to our board of directors on a quarterly basis to enable our board of directors, including the independent directors, to determine whether such policies are being fairly applied.
In addition, entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Advisor or the Sponsor are permitted to hold positions in securities or other assets or be subject to contractual or legal restraints that could prevent us from being able to initiate a transaction that we otherwise might have initiated or to sell an investment that we otherwise might have sold or, in our judgment, such position(s) or restraint(s) may make such a transaction inadvisable. The investment activities of one or more entities sponsored or advised by affiliates of the Advisor or the Sponsor have the potential to be inconsistent with our investment activities.
If we invest in joint venture or co-ownership arrangements with the Advisor or its affiliates, they may retain significant control over our investments even if our independent directors terminate the Advisor.
While a majority of our independent directors may terminate the Advisor upon 60 days’ written notice, our ability to remove co-general partners or advisors to any entities in which the Advisor or its affiliates serve in such capacities and in which we may serve as general partner or manager is limited. As a result, if we invest in such joint-venture or co-ownership arrangements; an affiliate of the Advisor may continue to maintain a substantial degree of control over our investments despite the termination of the Advisor.
RISKS RELATED TO OUR TAXATION AS A REIT
Failure to qualify as a REIT, or failure of our Operating Partnership to qualify as a partnership, for U.S. income tax purposes, could adversely affect our operations and our ability to make distributions.
We have elected to be taxed as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, commencing with the taxable year ended December 31, 2017, and we intend to continue to operate in accordance with the requirements for qualification as a REIT.
If we were to fail to qualify as a REIT for any taxable year, we would be subject to U.S. federal income tax on our taxable income at corporate rates. In addition, we would generally be disqualified from treatment as a REIT for the four taxable years following the year in which we lose our REIT status. Losing our REIT status would reduce our net earnings available for investment or distribution to stockholders because distributions to stockholders would no longer be deductible in computing our taxable income, resulting in additional tax liability. In addition, we would no longer be required to make
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distributions. However, any distributions made would be subject to the favorable tax rate applied to “qualified dividend income.” To the extent that distributions had been made in anticipation of our qualifying as a REIT, we might be required to borrow funds or liquidate some investments in order to pay the applicable corporate income tax. In addition, although we intend to operate in such a manner as to qualify as a REIT, it is possible that future economic, market, legal, tax or other considerations may cause our board of directors to determine that it is no longer in our best interest to continue to be qualified as a REIT and recommend that we revoke our REIT election.
We believe that the Operating Partnership will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as a partnership and not as an association or as a publicly traded partnership taxable as a corporation. If the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) successfully determines that the Operating Partnership should be treated as a corporation, the Operating Partnership would be required to pay U.S. federal income tax at corporate rates on its net income, its partners would be treated as stockholders of the Operating Partnership and distributions to partners would constitute distributions that would not be deductible in computing the Operating Partnership’s taxable income. In addition, if the Operating Partnership were treated as a corporation, we could fail to qualify as a REIT, with the resulting consequences described above.
To qualify as a REIT, we must meet annual distribution requirements, which may result in us distributing amounts that may otherwise be used for our operations.
To obtain the favorable tax treatment accorded to REITs, in addition to other qualification requirements, we normally will be required each year to distribute to our stockholders at least 90% of our REIT taxable income (which may not equal net income as calculated in accordance with GAAP), determined without regard to the deduction for distributions paid and by excluding net capital gains. We will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on our undistributed taxable income and net capital gain and to a 4% nondeductible excise tax on any amount by which distributions we pay with respect to any calendar year are less than the sum of 85% of our ordinary income, 95% of our capital gain net income and 100% of our undistributed income from prior years. These requirements could cause us to distribute amounts that otherwise would be invested in acquisitions of properties and it is possible that we might be required to borrow funds or sell assets to fund these distributions. It is possible that we might not always be able to continue to make distributions sufficient to meet the annual distribution requirements required to maintain our REIT status, avoid corporate tax on undistributed income and/or avoid the 4% excise tax.
From time to time, we may generate taxable income greater than our cash flow due to differences in timing between the recognition of taxable income and the actual receipt of cash. If we do not have other funds available in these situations, we could be required to borrow funds on unfavorable terms, sell investments at disadvantageous prices or distribute amounts that would otherwise be invested in future acquisitions to make distributions sufficient to enable us to pay out enough of our taxable income to satisfy the REIT distribution requirement and to avoid corporate income tax and the 4% excise tax in a particular year. These alternatives could increase our costs or reduce our equity. Thus, compliance with the REIT requirements may hinder our ability to grow, which could adversely affect our value.
Recharacterization of sale-leaseback transactions may cause us to lose our REIT status.
We may purchase properties and lease them back to the sellers of such properties. There can be no assurance that the IRS will not challenge our characterization of any such sale-leaseback transaction as a “true lease.” In the event that any such sale-leaseback transaction is challenged and successfully recharacterized as a financing or loan for U.S. federal income tax purposes, deductions for depreciation and cost recovery relating to such property would be disallowed. If a sale-leaseback transaction were so recharacterized, we might fail to satisfy the REIT qualification “asset tests,” the “income tests” or the “distribution requirements” and, consequently, lose our REIT status effective with the year of recharacterization. Alternatively, the amount of our REIT taxable income could be recalculated which might also cause us to fail to meet the distribution requirement for a taxable year in the event we cannot make a sufficient deficiency distribution.
Contributions of properties to a Subsidiary REIT or TRS could result in our recognizing additional taxable income.
We may choose to transfer certain properties held by the Operating Partnership to a subsidiary REIT or TRS. We expect such transfer generally would be structured to qualify as a tax-free contribution under Section 351 of the Code. Upon such transfer, the Subsidiary REIT or TRS, and not the Operating Partnership, would be entitled to claim any depreciation deductions relating to the transferred property. This could result in a higher amount of taxable income being allocated to us under the Operating Partnership Agreement than would be allocated in the absence of such transfer to the Subsidiary REIT or TRS.
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Our stockholders may have current tax liability on distributions if they elect to reinvest in shares of our common stock.
Participation in the DRIP does not defer the recognition of any taxable income that results from the distributions. Stockholders who elect to participate in the DRIP, and who are subject to U.S. federal income taxation laws, will incur a tax liability on an amount equal to the fair market value on the relevant distribution date of the shares of our common stock purchased with reinvested distributions, to the extent such distribution is properly treated as being paid out of “earnings and profits,” even though such stockholders have elected not to receive the distributions used to purchase those shares of common stock in cash. As a result, each of our stockholders that is not a tax-exempt entity may have to use funds from other sources to pay such tax liability on the value of the common stock received.
Distributions payable by REITs do not qualify for the reduced tax rates that apply to other corporate distributions.
The maximum tax rate applicable to income from “qualified dividends” payable to U.S. stockholders that are individuals, trusts and estates is currently 20% plus a 3.8% “Medicare tax” surcharge. Distributions payable by REITs, however, generally continue to be taxed at the normal rate applicable to the individual recipient on ordinary income, rather than the 20% preferential rate, and are also subject to the 3.8% Medicare tax; provided however, that all such distributions (other than distributions designated as capital gain distributions and distributions traceable to distributions from a taxable REIT subsidiary), which are received by an individual, directly or indirectly through a pass-through entity, are eligible for a deduction equal to 20% of such ordinary income dividend. The more favorable rates applicable to regular corporate distributions could cause investors who are individuals to perceive investments in REITs to be relatively less attractive than investments in the stocks of non-REIT corporations that pay distributions, which could adversely affect the value of our common stock.
In certain circumstances, we may be subject to U.S. federal and state income taxes as a REIT, which would reduce our cash available for distribution to our stockholders.
Even if we qualify and maintain our status as a REIT, we may be subject to U.S. federal income taxes or state taxes. For example, net income from a “prohibited transaction” will be subject to a 100% tax. We may not be able to make sufficient distributions to avoid excise taxes applicable to REITs. We may also decide to retain income we earn from the sale or other disposition of our properties and pay income tax directly on such income. In that event, our stockholders would be treated as if they had earned that income and paid the tax on it directly, would be eligible to receive a credit or refund of the taxes deemed paid on the income deemed earned, and shall increase the adjusted basis of its shares by the excess of such deemed income over the amount of taxes deemed paid. However, stockholders that are tax-exempt, such as charities or qualified pension plans, would have no benefit from their deemed payment of such tax liability. We may also be subject to state and local taxes on our income or property, either directly or at the level of the companies through which we indirectly own our assets. Any of these taxes we pay will reduce our cash available for distribution to our stockholders.
Distributions to tax-exempt investors may be classified as unrelated business taxable income.
Generally, distributions with respect to our common stock, or gain from the sale of our common stock, does not constitute “unrelated business taxable income” to a tax-exempt investor. However, there are certain exceptions to this rule. In particular:
• Part of the income and gain recognized by certain qualified employee pension trusts with respect to our common stock may be treated as unrelated business taxable income if shares of our common stock are predominately held by qualified employee pension trusts, and we are required to rely on a special look-through rule for purposes of meeting one of the REIT share ownership tests, and we are not operated in a manner to avoid treatment of such income or gain as unrelated business taxable income;
• Part of the income and gain recognized by a tax-exempt investor with respect to our common stock would constitute unrelated business taxable income if the investor incurs debt in order to acquire the common stock; and
• Part or all of the income or gain recognized with respect to our common stock by social clubs, voluntary employee benefit associations, supplemental unemployment benefit trusts and qualified group legal services plans which are exempt from U.S. federal income taxation under Sections 501(c)(7), (9), (17), or (20) of the Code may be treated as unrelated business taxable income.
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Investments in other REITs and real estate partnerships could subject us to the tax risks associated with the tax status of such entities.
We may invest in the securities of other REITs and real estate partnerships. Such investments are subject to the risk that any such REIT or partnership may fail to satisfy the requirements to qualify as a REIT or a partnership, as the case may be, in any given taxable year. In the case of a REIT, such failure would subject such entity to taxation as a corporation, may require such REIT to incur indebtedness to pay its tax liabilities, may reduce its ability to make distributions to us, and may render it ineligible to elect REIT status prior to the fifth taxable year following the year in which it fails to so qualify. In the case of a partnership, such failure could subject such partnership to an entity level tax and reduce the entity’s ability to make distributions to us. In addition, such failures could, depending on the circumstances, jeopardize our ability to qualify as a REIT.
If any subsidiary REIT failed to qualify as a REIT, we could fail to remain qualified as a REIT.
We own and may acquire direct or indirect interests in one or more subsidiary REITs. A subsidiary REIT is subject to the various REIT qualification requirements and other limitations described herein that are applicable to us. If a subsidiary REIT were to fail to qualify as a REIT, then (i) that subsidiary REIT would become subject to U.S. federal income taxation as a corporation and (ii) the subsidiary REIT’s failure to qualify could have an adverse effect on our ability to comply with the REIT income and asset tests, and thus could impair our ability to qualify as a REIT unless we could avail ourself of certain relief provisions.
Complying with the REIT requirements may cause us to forego otherwise attractive opportunities.
To qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we must continually satisfy tests concerning, among other things, the sources of our income, the nature and diversification of our assets, the amounts we distribute to our stockholders and the ownership of shares of our common stock. We may be required to forego attractive investments. We also may be required to make distributions to stockholders at disadvantageous times or when we do not have funds readily available for distribution. Thus, compliance with the REIT requirements may hinder our ability to operate solely on the basis of maximizing profits.
Complying with the REIT requirements may force us to liquidate otherwise attractive investments.
To qualify as a REIT, we must ensure that at the end of each calendar quarter, at least 75% of the value of our assets consists of cash, cash items, government securities and qualified REIT real estate assets. The remainder of our investments (other than governmental securities and qualified real estate assets) generally cannot include more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of any one issuer or more than 10% of the total value of the outstanding securities of any one issuer. In addition, in general, no more than 5% of the value of our assets (other than government securities and qualified real estate assets) can consist of the securities of any one issuer, and no more than 25% (20% for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2026) of the value of our total assets can be represented by securities of one or more taxable REIT subsidiaries. If we fail to comply with these requirements at the end of any calendar quarter, we must correct such failure within 30 days after the end of the calendar quarter to avoid losing our REIT status and suffering adverse tax consequences or, generally, must have “reasonable cause” for the failure and pay a penalty, in addition to satisfying such requirements. As a result, we may be required to liquidate otherwise attractive investments.
The stock ownership limit imposed by the Code for REITs and our charter may restrict our business combination opportunities.
To qualify as a REIT under the Code, not more than 50% in value of our outstanding stock may be owned, directly or indirectly, by five or fewer individuals (as defined in the Code to include certain entities) at any time during the last half of each taxable year after our first year in which we qualify as a REIT. Our charter, with certain exceptions, authorizes our board of directors to take the actions that are necessary and desirable to preserve our qualification as a REIT. Unless an exemption is granted by our board of directors, no person (as defined to include entities) may own more than 9.8% in value of our capital stock or more than 9.8% in value or in number of shares, whichever is more restrictive, of our common stock. In addition, our charter generally prohibits beneficial or constructive ownership of shares of our capital stock by any person that owns, actually or constructively, an interest in any of our lessees that would cause us to own, actually or constructively, 10% or more of any of our lessees. Our board of directors may grant an exemption, prospectively or retroactively, in its sole discretion, subject to such conditions, representations and undertakings as it may determine. These ownership limitations in our charter are common in REIT charters and are intended, among other purposes, to assist us in
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complying with the tax law requirements and to minimize administrative burdens. However, these ownership limits might also delay or prevent a transaction or a change in our control that might involve a premium price for our common stock or otherwise be in the best interests of our stockholders.
Our ownership of and relationship with our TRSs will be limited and a failure to comply with the limits would jeopardize our REIT status and may result in the application of a 100% excise tax.
A REIT may own up to 100% of the stock of one or more TRS. A TRS may earn income that would not be qualifying income if earned directly by the parent REIT. Both the subsidiary and the REIT must jointly elect to treat the subsidiary as a TRS. A corporation of which a TRS directly or indirectly owns more than 35% of the voting power or value of the stock will automatically be treated as a TRS. Overall, for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 through December 31, 2025, no more than 20% of the value of a REIT’s assets may consist of stock or securities of one or more TRS. For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2025, up to 25% of a REIT’s asset value may be comprised of TRS securities. A domestic TRS will pay U.S. federal, state and local income tax at regular corporate rates on any income that it earns. In addition, certain tax laws may limit the deductibility of interest paid or accrued by a TRS to its parent REIT to assure that the TRS is subject to an appropriate level of corporate taxation. The rules also impose a 100% excise tax on certain transactions between a TRS and its parent REIT that are not conducted on an arm’s-length basis. We cannot assure our stockholders that we will be able to comply with the value limitation on ownership of TRS stock and securities on an ongoing basis so as to maintain REIT status or to avoid application of the 100% excise tax imposed on certain non-arm’s length transactions.
Recharacterization of transactions in connection with the Operating Partnership’s DST Program could result in a 100% tax on income from “prohibited transactions,” which would diminish our cash available for distribution to our stockholders.
In connection with the formation of DSTs under our DST Program, one or more of our TRSs have acquired and sold, and will continue to acquire and sell, properties into one or more DSTs. If the IRS successfully treated the Operating Partnership, rather than our TRSs, as the beneficial owner and seller of such properties, gain from such sales could be treated as gain from the sale of properties held primarily for the sale to customers in the ordinary course of business. In such event, such gain could constitute income from a “prohibited transaction” subject to the 100% tax described above. If this occurs, our cash available for distribution to our stockholders may be adversely affected.
The failure of a mezzanine loan to qualify as a real estate asset could adversely affect our ability to qualify as a REIT.
The IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2003-65, which provides a safe harbor pursuant to which a mezzanine loan that is secured by interests in a pass-through entity will be treated by the IRS as a real estate asset for purposes of the REIT 75% asset test, and interest derived from such loan will be treated as qualifying mortgage interest for purposes of the REIT 75% income test. Although the Revenue Procedure provides a safe harbor on which taxpayers may rely, it does not prescribe rules of substantive tax law. We may make investments in loans secured by interests in pass-through entities in a manner that complies with the various requirements applicable to our qualification as a REIT. To the extent, however, that any such loans do not satisfy all of the requirements for reliance on the safe harbor set forth in the Revenue Procedure, there can be no assurance that the IRS will not challenge the tax treatment of such loans, which could jeopardize our ability to qualify as a REIT.
Liquidation of assets may jeopardize our REIT status.
To qualify as a REIT, we must comply with requirements regarding our assets and our sources of income. If we are compelled to liquidate our investments to satisfy our obligations to our lenders, we may be unable to comply with these requirements, ultimately jeopardizing our status as a REIT, or we may be subject to a 100% tax on any resultant gain if we sell assets that are treated as dealer property or inventory.
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Changes to the U.S. federal income tax laws, including the enactment of certain tax reform measures, could have an adverse impact on our business and financial results.
In recent years, numerous legislative, judicial and administrative changes have been made to the U.S. federal income tax laws applicable to investments in real estate and REITs, and it is possible that additional such legislation may be enacted in the future. There can be no assurance that future changes to the U.S. federal income tax laws or regulatory changes will not be proposed or enacted that could impact our business and financial results. The REIT rules are constantly under review by persons involved in the legislative process and by the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Treasury Department, which may result in revisions to regulations and interpretations in addition to statutory changes. If enacted, certain of such changes could have an adverse impact on our business and financial results.
We cannot predict whether, when or to what extent any new U.S. federal tax laws, regulations, interpretations or rulings will impact the real estate investment industry or REITs. Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the effect of potential future changes to the U.S. federal tax laws on an investment in our shares.
Certain foreign investors may be subject to tax under the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act of 1980 (“FIRPTA”) on the sale of common shares if we do not qualify as a “domestically controlled qualified investment entity” or if any of our distributions to such investors are attributable to our taxable disposition of U.S. real property interests.
A foreign person (subject to certain exceptions) disposing of a U.S. real property interest, including shares of a U.S. corporation whose assets consist principally of U.S. real property interests, generally is subject to a tax under FIRPTA on the gain recognized on the disposition. FIRPTA does not apply, however, to the disposition of stock in a REIT if the REIT is a “domestically controlled qualified investment entity” (as defined in Section 897(h)(4)(B) of the Code and the regulations promulgated thereunder). A domestically controlled qualified investment entity includes a REIT 50% or more of whose shares (based on value) is held directly or indirectly by U.S. holders at all times during a specified testing period. Prospective investors are urged to consult with their tax advisors regarding the application and impact of these rules. There can be no assurance that we are or will qualify as a domestically controlled qualified investment entity. If we were to fail to so qualify, gain realized by a foreign investor on a sale of our common stock would potentially be subject to FIRPTA unless our common stock was traded on an established securities market and the foreign investor did not at any time during a specified testing period directly or indirectly own more than 10% of the value of our outstanding common stock. We do not, however, expect any of our shares to be regularly traded on an established securities market. Regardless of our status as a domestically controlled qualified investment entity, capital gain distributions attributable to a disposition of a U.S. real property interest will generally be subject to tax under FIRPTA in the hands of non-U.S. investors (unless an exception to FIRPTA applies to such investor).
INVESTMENT COMPANY RISKS
We are not registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, and therefore we will not be subject to the requirements imposed on an investment company by the Investment Company Act which may limit or otherwise affect our investment choices.
We, the Operating Partnership, and our subsidiaries intend to conduct our businesses so that we are not required to register as “investment companies” under the Investment Company Act. The operation of a business in a manner so as not to be subject to regulation as an investment company requires an analysis of and compliance with complex laws, regulations and SEC staff interpretations, not all of which are summarized herein. Although we could modify our business methods at any time, at the present time we focus our activities on investments in real estate, buildings, and other assets that can be referred to as “sticks and bricks” and therefore we will not be an investment company under Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act. We also may invest in other real estate investments, such as real estate-related securities, and will otherwise be considered to be in the real estate business.
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Companies subject to the Investment Company Act are required to comply with a variety of substantive requirements such as requirements relating to:
• Limitations on the capital structure of the entity;
• Restrictions on certain investments;
• Prohibitions on transactions with affiliated entities; and
• Public reporting disclosures, record keeping, voting procedures, proxy disclosure and similar corporate governance rules and regulations.
These and other requirements are intended to provide benefits or protections to security holders of investment companies. Because we and our subsidiaries do not expect to be subject to these requirements, stockholders will not be entitled to these benefits or protections. It is our policy to operate in a manner that will not require us to register as an investment company, and we do not expect to register as an “investment company” under the Investment Company Act.
We do not expect that we, the Operating Partnership, or other subsidiaries will be an investment company because, if we have any securities that are considered to be investment securities held by an entity, then we will seek to ensure that holdings of investment securities in such entity will not exceed 40% of the total assets of that entity (on a consolidated basis) and that no such entity holds itself out as being engaged primarily in the business of investing in securities. If an entity were to hold investment securities having a value exceeding 40% of the value of the entity’s total assets (on a consolidated basis), and no other exclusion from registration was available, that entity might be required to register as an investment company. In order to avoid such a result, we, the Operating Partnership, or a subsidiary may be unable to sell assets we would otherwise want to sell or we may need to sell assets we would otherwise wish to retain. In addition, we may also have to forgo opportunities to acquire certain investments or interests in companies or entities that we would otherwise want to acquire, or acquire assets we might otherwise not select for purchase.
If we, the Operating Partnership or any subsidiary owns assets that qualify as “investment securities” and the value of such assets exceeds 40% of the value of its total assets (on a consolidated basis), the entity would be deemed to be an investment company absent another exclusion from the Investment Company Act. Certain of the subsidiaries that we may form in the future could seek to rely upon the exclusion provided by Section 3(c)(5)(C) of that Act, which is available for entities, among other things, “primarily engaged in the business of purchasing or otherwise acquiring mortgages and other liens on and interests in real estate.” This exclusion, as interpreted by the staff of the SEC, generally requires that at least 55% of an entity’s portfolio be comprised of qualifying interests and an additional 25% of the entity’s portfolio be comprised of real estate-related interests although this percentage may be reduced to the extent that more than 55% of the entity’s assets are invested in qualifying interests, (as such terms have been interpreted by the staff of the SEC) and no more than 20% of such entity’s total assets are invested in miscellaneous investments. Qualifying interests for this purpose include actual interests in real estate, certain mortgage loans and other assets as interpreted in a manner consistent with SEC staff guidance. We intend to treat as real estate-related interests those assets that do not qualify for treatment as qualifying interests, including any securities of companies primarily engaged in real estate businesses that are not within the scope of SEC staff positions and/or interpretations regarding qualifying interests and securities issued by pass-through entities of which substantially all of the assets consist of qualifying interests and/or real estate-related interests. Due to the factual nature of this test, we, the Operating Partnership, or a subsidiary may be unable to sell assets we would otherwise want to sell or may need to sell assets we would otherwise wish to retain, if we deem it necessary to remain in compliance with the foregoing standards. In addition, we may have to forgo opportunities to acquire certain investments or interests in companies or entities that we would otherwise want to acquire, or acquire assets we might otherwise not select for purchase, if we deem it necessary to remain in compliance with the foregoing standards.
In addition, we, the Operating Partnership and/or our subsidiaries may rely upon other exclusions, including the exclusion provided by Section 3(c)(6) of the Investment Company Act (which excludes, among other things, parent entities whose primary business is conducted through majority-owned subsidiaries relying upon the exclusion provided by Section 3(c)(5)(C), discussed above), from the definition of an investment company and the registration requirements under the Investment Company Act.
There can be no assurance that the laws and regulations governing the Investment Company Act status of REITs (and/or their subsidiaries), including actions by the SEC or its staff providing more specific or different guidance regarding these exclusions, will not change in a manner that adversely affects our operations. For example, on August 31, 2011, the SEC issued a concept release requesting comments regarding a number of matters relating to the exclusion provided by Section
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3(c)(5)(C) of the Investment Company Act, including the nature of assets that qualify for purposes of the exclusion and whether mortgage REITs should be regulated in a manner similar to investment companies. To the extent that the SEC or the SEC staff provides more specific guidance regarding any of the matters bearing upon the exclusions discussed above or other exclusions from the definition of an investment company under the Investment Company Act upon which we may rely, we may be required to change the way we conduct our business or adjust our strategy accordingly. Any additional guidance from the SEC staff could provide additional flexibility to us, or it could further inhibit our ability to pursue the strategies we have chosen. If we meet the definition of an investment company under the Investment Company Act and we fail to qualify for an exclusion therefrom, our ability to use leverage and other business strategies would be substantially reduced. Our business will be materially and adversely affected if we fail to qualify for an exemption or exclusion from regulation under the Investment Company Act.
If we or the Operating Partnership are required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, the additional expenses and operational limitations associated with such registration may reduce our stockholders’ investment return or impair our ability to conduct our business as planned.
If we become an investment company or are otherwise required to register as an investment company, we might be required to revise some of our current policies, or substantially restructure our business, to comply with the Investment Company Act. This would likely require us to incur the expense and delay of holding a stockholder meeting to vote on proposals for such changes. Further, if we were required to register as an investment company, but failed to do so, we would be prohibited from engaging in our business, criminal and civil actions could be brought against us, some of our contracts might be unenforceable, unless a court were to direct enforcement, and a court could appoint a receiver to take control of us and liquidate our business.
ERISA RISKS
If our assets are deemed to be ERISA plan assets, we and the Advisor may be exposed to liabilities under Title I of ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code.
In some circumstances where an ERISA plan holds an interest in an entity, the assets of the entire entity are deemed to be ERISA plan assets unless an exception applies. This is known as the “look-through rule.” Under those circumstances, the obligations and other responsibilities of plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries and plan administrators, and of parties in interest and disqualified persons, under Title I of ERISA and Section 4975 of the Code, as applicable, may be applicable, and there may be liability under these and other provisions of ERISA and the Code. We believe that our assets should not be treated as plan assets because the shares should qualify as “publicly-offered securities” that are exempt from the look-through rules under applicable Treasury Regulations. We note, however, that because certain limitations are imposed upon the transferability of shares so that we may qualify as a REIT, and perhaps for other reasons, it is possible that this exemption may not apply. If that is the case, and if the Advisor or we are exposed to liability under ERISA or the Code, our performance and results of operations could be adversely affected. Prior to making an investment in us, our stockholders should consult with their legal and other advisors concerning the impact of ERISA and the Code on their investment and our performance.
