Customer Story

International Capital: Providing exceptional investor reporting at scale

“We work with some really large family offices in Europe, and I think this fits with the level of sophistication that they expect.”

Carrie Stumfall
Director of Asset Management, International Capital

Meeting high client expectations with the help of AppFolio Investment Manager

International Capital Director of Asset Management, Carrie Stumfall, manages investments in real estate projects as well as strategy development, financial performance, and reporting. We met with Carrie to learn more about how International Capital is using AppFolio Investment Manager to support their clients and streamline the business.

How has your partnership with AppFolio changed your business?

Before using AppFolio, we began to have investors asking for 24/7 access to their portfolios. They were requesting an online portal where they could communicate with us and load and store documents. At the time, clients would have to call us and we would provide them with statements, and it was not always on a consistent basis. That has been the biggest shift since using AppFolio Investment Manager: now we are more transparent with our investors. They have more access to us and they can see the projects they’re investing in.

I also love the fundraising workflow, where you can see all the potential project pictures and details in one place. And then it’s very easy for us to share those potential deals with investors, and we can choose which investors can see it.

Have you seen any return on investment since adding investment management technology to your business?

Definitely. We’ve probably taken two days off of work for tax season and the way we upload send out K-1s alone.

International Capital is very strong on reporting, we report at least quarterly on our projects, and we use reports to tell clients about the market and what's going on. Now, we’ve been able to enhance our reports and make sure we get new project photos for each project that's in development, and then we load those in AppFolio for the investors to see. That's something we do now that keeps us in front of those investors monthly. We work with some really large family offices in Europe, and I think this fits with the level of sophistication that they expect. So I think it's really important that we stay up with the latest technology.

Are there any features that International Capital has found especially useful?

We work with German investors, and there was an article circulating recently that talked about what German investors are looking for in real estate. Some of the items listed were they wanted online digital analysis, project analysis, and digital interactions with investment managers. Since we use the Investor Portal, our CEO was thrilled to say “we’ve already got that.”

What would you tell someone that was considering adopting AppFolio Investment Manager?

I'd highly recommend it. Not only does it give your investors a better experience with your company — they have better transparency, they have access to information 24/7—but internally, I think it improves teamwork. I think it creates more efficiency for employees, it creates a teamwork mentality because so many people can benefit from it. It also just gives you access to information in a more efficient manner. I also want to say, just that you're so open to our suggestions. Because as we're in the day-to-day, and we see things that could be easier, you're so open to us making comments. And that's so important, that we're able to tell you what we think and you'll look at it. The customer service is so important—just that I can ask a question and I know I'll get an answer that day.