We believe that significant opportunities exist to acquire undervalued or mismanaged real estate assets or real estate that is under-performing due to inefficient ownership, as well as to develop or rehabilitate real estate product to meet demand in certain markets with attractive risk-adjusted returns. Ulysses has been able to successfully pursue this approach by focusing on three guiding investment philosophies: investment quality, value creation, and timing.
First, we feel that, over time, investment in quality properties in core, high-growth markets with supply constraints will produce superior returns. Second, we believe in value creation and that the willingness to assume an acceptable degree of risk to create a new product or to enhance an existing product is often rewarded with significant returns.
Finally, we regard timing as a crucial element to any investment, as real estate is a cyclical industry, with windows of opportunity in which to buy, develop, hold, or sell investments. Such cyclical timing is both market and product specific, and is impacted by both real estate fundamentals (supply and demand), and capital market ebbs and flows. While the nature of opportunities may change over time, we believe we can produce excellent real estate returns through all phases of real estate cycles.
The real estate investing philosophies outlined above are implemented using the following strategies:
Market Research and Timing
We focus on asset types and geographic regions to identify broad areas of opportunity, and then begin developing specific investment strategies to take advantage of these opportunities. By anticipating changes in market conditions, we strive to gain a competitive advantage in acquiring and developing assets and formulating attractive exit strategies.
Local Entrepreneur Network
Over time, we have cultivated relationships with an extensive network of local entrepreneurs throughout the nation who assist us in locating, pursuing, and investing in opportunities, often before they are widely marketed. We benefit from the management expertise and, in certain cases, the significant infrastructures of our operating partners. Through these affiliations, we are able to position and control opportunities on attractive terms and take advantage of local entrepreneurs’ extensive knowledge of local market conditions. We also believe that local knowledge and management can add significant value and generally seek to align our local entrepreneurs’ interests with our own by requiring them to invest alongside us, rather than simply participating in the profit of the project.