The Imperative Fund is an impact investing company managed by Imperative Advisors LLC, a New York-based firm that was founded in 2015. The fund aims to lift communities in Mexico out of poverty by delivering essential goods and services including affordable housing, clean water, and access to energy. To help families overcome poverty, Imperative Fund identifies vulnerable communities that lack access to essential goods and services with limited household income. They then work with the local governmental and a social housing developer to construct a new neighborhood of affordable single-family homes with access to municipal water, sewage, electricity and internet access.
Clients coming from these communities are identified and though they don’t have proof of income or a credit history, are integrated in the financial system by joining the Imperative Funds program, opening a bank account and taking out a five-year loan to purchase homes. Over the the course of the following five years, the clients will have built a credit history and net worth through owning a paid-off home.
Families can purchase the homes with a federal subsidy and low-cost financing from the fund. Through this process, a typical family is able to transition from a substandard, single-room dwelling to a structurally-sound, two-bedroom home with access to municipal utilities. To date, the Imperative Fund has worked with more than 800 families with over 60% of their client base being single women head-of-household. While the fund currently only operates in Mexico, its long-term goal is to replicate its model in other countries.
Impact story: Creating communities in Emiliano Zapata, Mexico
Emiliano Zapata, Mexico is located in the state of Morelos where the Imperative Fund is working to provide solutions to poverty by constructing two-bedroom homes and providing essential goods and services for families in the community.
The Praxis commitment
Praxis Mutual Funds supports organizations through investments in Calvert Impact, an impact-investing institution that helps people around the world through community development financing. It’s part of the Praxis commitment to place approximately 1% of each of its funds to benefit neighborhoods and individuals through community development investments.