A number of principles have guided IEC throughout its existence. The three most important principles are:
Focus on location and location history
Mobility of capital between in fill markets
Strategically timed renovations unlock embedded value
Our view of location in commercial real estate investing has three essential elements. First, we must have intimate knowledge of investment locations. We operate in only four well defined locations, three of which the company founders have lived in for extended periods of time and the company has had nineteen years of continuous experience in the fourth. These locations are Southern California, Santa Barbara,
Northern California and Denver. Second, our detailed knowledge of locations includes sub-market and property type history. Third, the basic economic strength of a location is emphasized as it relates to commercial real estate. The California economy continues to offer one of the safest investment havens for commercial real estate in the world, and it is no accident that 85 percent of our investments have been in this state. Investors in California property have suffered significantly fewer investment losses than any other region of the country during recessions because of the state’s basic economic strength and diversity. This also means that we have transacted at California’s high prices and low capitalization rates, so over 90 percent of our returns have been equity appreciation rather than current cash flow.