Significant Accounting Policies (Policies) |
3 Months Ended | ||||||||||||
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Mar. 31, 2023 | |||||||||||||
| Significant Accounting Policies | |||||||||||||
| Unaudited Financial Statements |
Unaudited Financial Statements The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information. Accordingly, they do not include all the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. However, in the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 and the notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K. Results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023, are not necessarily indicative of the operating results to be attained in the entire fiscal year, or for any subsequent period. |
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| Use of Estimates |
Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Management bases its estimates on (a) various assumptions that are based on experience, (b) projections regarding future operations and (c) general financial market and local and general economic conditions. Actual amounts could materially differ from those estimates. |
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| Cash and Cash Equivalents |
Cash and Cash Equivalents The Company considers all demand deposits, cashier’s checks, money market accounts and certificates of deposit with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents. The Company maintains its cash and cash equivalents at financial institutions. The combined account balances typically exceed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance coverage, and, as a result, there is a concentration of credit risk related to amounts on deposit. The Company does not believe that the risk is significant. |
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| Investment Securities |
Investment Securities The Company considers all highly liquid interest-earning investments with a maturity of three months or less at the date of purchase to be cash equivalents. The fair values of these investments approximate their carrying values. Debt investments are classified as available-for-sale and realized gains and losses are recorded using the specific identification method. Changes in fair value, excluding credit losses and impairments, are recorded in other comprehensive income. Fair value is calculated based on publicly available market information or other estimates determined by management. If the cost of an investment exceeds its fair value, the Company evaluates, among other factors, general market conditions, credit quality of debt instrument issuers, and the extent to which the fair value is less than cost. If qualitative factors indicate an available for sale debt security may be credit impaired the loss is measured as the excess of carrying value over the present value of expected cash flows, limited to the excess of carrying value over fair value. To determine credit losses, the Company may employ a systematic methodology that considers available quantitative and qualitative evidence. In addition, the Company considers specific adverse conditions related to the financial health of, and business outlook for, the investee. If the Company has plans to sell the security or it is more likely than not that the Company will be required to sell the security before recovery, then a decline in fair value below cost is recorded as an impairment charge in net income and a new cost basis in the investment is established. If market, industry, and/or investee conditions deteriorate, the Company may incur future impairments. |
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| Current Expected Credit Losses Allowance |
Current Expected Credit Losses Allowance The Company adopted the current expected credit loss (“CECL”) standard effective January 1, 2023 in accordance with ASU No. 2016-13. The initial CECL allowance adjustment of $2,489,574 was recorded effective January 1, 2023 as a cumulative-effect of change in accounting principle through a direct charge to accumulated deficit on the consolidated statements of shareholders’ equity; however, subsequent changes to the CECL allowance will be recognized in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income. The Company records an allowance for credit losses in accordance with the CECL standard on the Company’s loan portfolio, including unfunded construction commitments, on a collective basis by assets with similar risk characteristics. This methodology replaces the probable incurred loss impairment methodology. In addition, interest and fees receivable and amounts included in due from borrowers, other than reimbursements, which include origination, modification and other fees receivable are also analyzed for credit losses in accordance with the CECL standard, as they represent a financial asset that is subject to credit risk. As allowed under the CECL standard the Company uses, as a practical expedient, the fair value of the collateral at the reporting date when recording the net carrying amount of the loan and determining the allowance for credit losses for loans in pending/pre-foreclosure status, as defined. Fair value of collateral is reduced by estimated cost to sell if the collateral is expected to be sold. The amount of loans in pending/pre-foreclosure as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 was approximately $40.6 million and $24.0 million, respectively. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, there were no such loans in pending/pre-foreclosure that required an allowance for credit loss. The CECL standard requires an entity to consider historical loss experience, current conditions, and a reasonable and supportable forecast of the economic environment. The Company utilizes a loss-rate method for estimating current expected credit losses. The loss rate method involves applying a loss rate to a pool of loans with similar risk characteristics to estimate the expected credit losses on that pool of loans. In determining the CECL allowance, the Company considers various factors including (1) historical loss experience in its portfolio, (2) loan specific losses for loans deemed collateral dependent based on excess amortized cost over the fair value of the underlying collateral, and (3) its current and future view of the macroeconomic environment. The Company utilizes a reasonable and supportable forecast period equal to the contractual term of the loan plus any applicable short-term extensions that are reasonably expected for construction loans. Management estimates the allowance for credit losses using relevant information, from internal and external sources, relating to past events, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts. The allowance for credit losses is maintained at a level sufficient to provide for expected credit losses over the life of the loans based on evaluating historical credit loss experience and making adjustments to historical loss information for differences in the specific risk characteristics in the current loan portfolio. The CECL allowance related to the principal outstanding is presented within “Mortgages receivable, net” and for unfunded commitments is within accounts payable and accrued liabilities in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. The CECL allowance related to the late payment fees are presented in “Interest and fees receivable” and “Due from borrowers” in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. As of March 31, 2023 and January 1, 2023, the CECL allowance for mortgages receivable was approximately $2.0 million and approximately $1.9 million, respectively, an increase of approximately $55,000. As of March 31, 2023 and January 1, 2023, the CECL allowance for interest and fees receivable was approximately $30,100 and approximately $26,100, respectively, an increase of $4,000. As of March 31, 2023 and January 1, 2023, the CECL allowance for due from borrower was approximately $22,300 and $19,900, respectively, an increase of approximately $2,400. As of March 31, 2023 and January 1, 2023, the CECL allowance for unfunded commitments was $562,000, and approximately $522,000, respectively, an increase of approximately $40,000. |
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| Fair Value Measurements |
Fair Value Measurements The framework for measuring fair value provides a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3). The three levels of the fair value hierarchy under Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 820 are described as follows: Level 1Inputs to the valuation methodology are unadjusted quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets that the Company can access. Level 2Inputs to the valuation methodology include:
If the asset or liability has a specified (i.e., contractual) term, the Level 2 input must be observable for substantially the full term of the asset or liability. Level 3inputs to the valuation methodology are unobservable and significant to the fair value measurement. |
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| Property and Equipment |
Property and Equipment Land and building acquired in December 2016 to serve as the Company’s office facilities is stated at cost. The building is being depreciated using the straight-line method over its estimated useful life of 40 years. Expenditures for repairs and maintenance are charged to expense as incurred. The Company relocated its entire operations to this property in March 2019. Land and building acquired in 2021 to serve as the Company’s future corporate headquarters is stated at cost. Renovation of the building was completed in the first quarter of 2023 and the Company relocated its operations to the new building in March 2023. The building is being depreciated using the straight-line method over its estimated useful life of 40 years. The new building was placed in service during the three months ended March of 2023. |
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| Real Estate Owned |
Real Estate Owned Real estate owned by the Company is stated at cost and is tested for impairment quarterly. |
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| Consolidations |
Consolidations The consolidated financial statements of the Company include the accounts of all subsidiaries in which the Company has control over significant operating, financial and investing decisions of the entity. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated. |
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| Impairment of Long-Lived Assets |
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets The Company monitors events or changes in circumstances that could indicate carrying amounts of long-lived assets may not be recoverable. When such events or changes in circumstances occur, the Company assesses the recoverability of long-lived assets by determining whether the carrying value of such assets will be recovered through undiscounted expected future cash flows. If the undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying amount of these assets, the Company recognizes an impairment loss based on the excess of the carrying amount over the fair market value of the assets. |
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| Goodwill |
Goodwill Goodwill is not amortized, but rather tested for impairment annually or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate potential impairment. Goodwill at March 31, 2023 represents the excess of the consideration paid over the fair value of net assets acquired from Urbane New Haven, LLC in October 2022. In testing goodwill for impairment, the Company follows FASB ASC 350, “Intangibles—Goodwill and Other”, which permits a qualitative assessment of whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value including goodwill. If the qualitative assessment determines that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value including goodwill, then no impairment is determined to exist for the reporting unit. However, if the qualitative assessment determines that it is more likely than not that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying value including goodwill, or the Company chooses not to perform the qualitative assessment, then the Company compares the fair value of that reporting unit with its carrying value, including goodwill. |
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| Deferred Financing Costs |
Deferred Financing Costs Costs incurred in connection with the Company’s revolving credit facilities, described in Note 7-Line of Credit, Mortgage Payable, Churchill Facility, and Needham Facility are, amortized over the term of the applicable facility using the straight-line method. Costs incurred by the Company in connection with the public offering of its unsecured, unsubordinated notes, described in Note 9 - Notes Payable, are being amortized over the term of the respective Notes. |
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| Revenue Recognition |
Revenue Recognition Interest income from the Company’s loan portfolio is earned over the loan period and is calculated using the simple interest method on principal amounts outstanding. Generally, the Company’s loans provide for interest to be paid monthly in arrears. The Company, generally, does not accrue interest income on mortgages receivable that are more than 90 days past due or interest charged at default rates. However, interest income not accrued at March 31, 2023 but collected prior to the issuance of this report is included in income for the period ended March 31, 2023. Origination and modification fee revenue, generally 1% – 3% of either the original loan principal or the modified loan balance, is collected at loan funding and is recognized ratably over the contractual life of the loan in accordance with ASC 310. |
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| Income Taxes |
Income Taxes The Company believes it qualifies as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) for federal income tax purposes and operates accordingly. It made the election to be taxed as a REIT on its 2017 Federal income tax return. The Company’s qualification as a REIT depends on its ability to meet on a continuing basis, through actual investment and operating results, various complex requirements under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), relating to, among other things, the sources of its income, the composition and values of its assets, its compliance with the distribution requirements applicable to REITs and the diversity of ownership of its outstanding capital stock. So long as it qualifies as a REIT, the Company, generally, will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its taxable income distributed to its shareholders. However, if it fails to qualify as a REIT in any taxable year and does not qualify for certain statutory relief provisions, it will be subject to U.S. federal income tax at regular corporate rates and may also be subject to various penalties and may be precluded from re-electing REIT status for the four taxable years following the year during in which it lost its REIT qualification. The Company has elected, and may elect in the future, to treat certain of its existing or newly created corporate subsidiaries as taxable REIT subsidiaries (“TRSs”). In general, a TRS may hold assets that the Company cannot hold directly and generally may engage in any real estate or non-real estate related business. The TRSs generate income, resulting in federal and state income tax liability for these entities. The Company does not expect to incur any corporate federal income tax liability outside of the TRSs, as it believes it has maintained its qualification as a REIT. During the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company’s TRSs recognized no provisions for federal income tax or state, local and franchise taxes on the Company’s consolidated statements of operations. During the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, there were no recognized provisions for federal income tax nor state, local and franchise tax. The income tax provision for the Company differs from the amount computed from applying the statutory federal income tax rate to income before income taxes due to non-taxable REIT income and other permanent differences including the non-deductibility of acquisition costs of business combinations for federal income tax reporting. FASB ASC Topic 740-10 “Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes” prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement attribute for financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return and disclosure required. Under this standard, an entity may only recognize or continue to recognize tax positions that meet a “more likely than not” threshold. The Company recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to unrecognized tax benefits in interest expense. The Company has determined that there are no uncertain tax positions requiring accrual or disclosure in the accompanying consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2023 and 2022. |
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| Earnings Per Share |
Earnings Per Share Basic and diluted earnings per share are calculated in accordance with ASC 260 — “Earnings Per Share.” Under ASC 260, basic earnings per share is computed by dividing income available to common shareholders by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding for the period. The computation of diluted earnings per share is similar to basic earnings per share, except that the denominator is increased to include the potential dilution from the exercise of stock options and warrants for common shares using the treasury stock method. The numerator in calculating both basic and diluted earnings per common share for each period is the reported net income. |
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| Recent Accounting Pronouncements |
Recent Accounting Pronouncements In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, “Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments”, (ASU 2016-13), which changes accounting requirements for the measurement and recognition of expected credit losses from an incurred or probable methodology to a current expected credit loss methodology. Mortgages receivable, unfunded loan commitments, interest and fees receivable and amounts included in due from borrowers, other than reimbursements, which include origination, modification and other fees receivable are the only items currently held by the Company that are within the scope of ASU 2016-13. The Company adopted this ASU effective January 1, 2023 and applied a modified retrospective approach through a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings upon adoption. At transition on January 1, 2023, the cumulative effect of adopting this ASU resulted in a decrease in retained earnings of $2,489,574 and an increase in the allowance for credit losses. The increase in the allowance is driven by the fact that the allowance under CECL covers expected credit losses over the full expected life of the loan portfolios and also takes into account forecasts of expected future economic conditions. In March 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-02, “Financial Instruments-Credit Losses” (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings and Vintage Disclosures, which eliminates the accounting guidance for troubled debt restructurings (“TDR”) for creditors that have adopted the CECL standard and requires enhanced disclosures for loan modifications made to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty in the form of interest rate reductions, principal forgiveness, other-than-insignificant payment delays, or term extensions. In addition, the new guidance requires presentation in the vintage disclosures of current-period gross write-offs by year of origination. The amendments in this update became effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022. This update did not have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements. In June 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-03, “Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to Contractual Sale Restrictions.” ASU 2022-03 was issued to (1) to clarify the guidance in FASB ASC Topic 820, “Fair Value Measurement”, when measuring the fair value of an equity security subject to contractual restrictions that prohibit the sale of an equity security, (2) to amend a related illustrative example, and (3) to introduce new disclosure requirements for equity securities subject to contractual sale restrictions that are measured at fair value in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 820. The amendments in this update are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, including interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company does not anticipate that this update will have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements. Management does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards if currently adopted would have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. |
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| Reclassifications |
Reclassifications Certain amounts included in the March 31, 2022 and December 31, 2022 consolidated financial statements have been reclassified to conform to the March 31, 2023 presentation. |