Still have questions? Here are a few Frequently Asked Questions about the work of Contact Fund and their answers.

Yes, Contact Fund is similar to the Calvert Foundation Community Investment Note model. Contact Fund is much smaller in size and infrastructure than Calvert Foundation and its investments are targeted specifically to New York City community development unlike Calvert Foundation whose investments are international in scope.

 

Contact Fund investors are individual accredited investors (link), though potential investors include accredited institutions such as private and public foundations.

An individual would choose to invest in Contact Fund if they value liquidity and financial returns, and also want to know that their money is being used to leverage other investments in community development organizations in New York City.

An institution would invest in Contact Fund if they want to put their capital to work in New York City neighborhoods while earning modest return and leveraging other critical capital for high-impact projects. Foundations would be earning credit toward their annual payout requirement.

 

Minimum investment in Contact Fund is $10,000, though our current average investment is $100,000.
Notes are issued twice a year on March 15th and September 15th for a term of either 6 or 12 months with automatic rollover. Interest rates are benchmarked from national 2-year jumbo CD rates, and the last round of notes was issued at 2.5%.
Contact Fund makes short-term working capital loans to community development organizations in New York City with a solid track record. For a list of our current and previous borrowers, please click here.
Through its lending and business development activities over the past 5 years, Contact Fund has established a solid on-the-ground network of community development professionals with an understanding and awareness of the activities of the community development field in New York City. High impact projects are identified where Contact Fund’s capital would play a critical role. The project and organization are then analyzed for potential investment.
  • Location: The organization must be located and operate in New York City
  • Mission: The organization’s, or project’s, mission must be focused on strengthening the residents and neighborhoods of New York City whether through affordable housing development, economic development or some other social enterprise.
  • Use of Funds: Contact Fund’s investment must be used to leverage other funds or play a critical role in the capital structure of a project.
  • Impact: Contact Fund aims to invest in high-impact organizations and projects. By high-impact, we mean that the projects being funded are having tangible impact for the duration of the investment. Ideas are being put into action, shovels are being put in the ground, entrepreneurs are seeing easier access to capital so that their business can grow, or homeowners are finding relief from the threat of foreclosure.
  • Risk: Contact Fund will often enter into a deal in a subordinated position to other lenders, as that is where linchpin funding is required. To mitigate this risk, Contact Fund focuses on the track record of the borrowing organization, developing strong relationships with fellow lenders who have the best interest of the borrowing organization in mind, and paying attention to shifts in local housing markets, city policies as well as NYC community development trends.

By high-impact, Contact Fund means that the projects being funded have tangible impact for the duration of the investment. Ideas are being put into action, shovels are put into the ground, entrepreneurs are seeing easier access to capital so that their business can grow, or homeowners are finding relief from the threat of foreclosure.

Contact Fund has had investor interest in one specific project or geographic area. To accommodate this, we created a new entity, an L3C (Low Income Limited Liability Corporation), to facilitate receipt of Program Related Investments (PRIs) from foundations which would only be exposed to a specific project. We see this transaction as a model for future investors who are only interested in exposure to a single project for mission or risk reasons.
If you’re interested in becoming an investor in Contact Fund, please contact us at 212-209-3877 or info@contactfund.com.