Kathryn Stephany, JD
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
• Operational Due Diligence
• Governance
• Operational Controls
Prior to her current role as General Counsel, Kate Stephany worked as securities attorney at FactRight since 2013.
Kate focuses on the business/formation areas of a company. Though she was new to the industry when she started at FactRight, her previous experience in bankruptcy law and banking helped her excel, and after a year she was promoted to project lead.
After obtaining her undergraduate degree, Kate worked in the finance department of a large insurance company, and moved to the Twin Cities a few years later to attend law school. Prior to working at FactRight, Kate held several positions, including contract work in due diligence for an international financial services company, and practiced bankruptcy law.
Kate is an avid knitter, winning awards from the Minnesota State fair, and enjoys camping with her husband.
- Juris Doctorate, William Mitchell College of Law
- Bachelor of Science, Finance, University of Illinois
- Past co-vice chair of Legal and Regulatory Committee, ADISA
- Member of ADISA legal and Regulatory committee
- Member, State Bar of Minnesota
- MSU Women in Leadership Advisory Board – 2021
Recent Blogs from FactRight
- How to Assess Affiliated Transactions in Private Placement Programsby kemp@factright.com (Kemp H. Hanley) on October 19, 2022 at 5:37 pm
Affiliated transactions can be thorny. They raise conflicts of interest and create additional governance challenges and risks. The relative fiduciary duties (or lack thereof) that the manager owes to each side of the transaction complicates the picture. Investors are understandably apprehensive about the conflicts in such deals because there is a higher likelihood that value is being shifted to the affiliated party inappropriately.
- The 1031 Show Features FactRight's Brandon Raatikkaby brandon@factright.com (Brandon Raatikka) on September 28, 2022 at 5:00 pm
One of the most prominent products in the alternative investment space in recent years have been DSTs/1031 Exchanges, which has grown to become an annual $8 billion to $10 billion industry. However, with recent trends in rising interest rates and cap rate compression for many asset classes, due diligence on DST programs in the market has never been more important. With that in mind, FactRight’s chief operating officer (and resident DST expert) Brandon Raatikka joined Ridgegate Financial’s Wallace Smith on the 1031 Show to discuss the importance of 1031 due diligence. The podcast, which you can check out below, covers several topics that broker-dealers and RIAs should consider when evaluating the 1031 space, including the following: The benefits of a third-party due diligence report Trends in the 1031 space An overview of DSTs and key benefits of DST investments Key differences between TICs and DSTs, including the Seven Deadly Sins A primer on 721 UPREITs Areas of focus for evaluating a DST sponsor
- FactRight's Annual Due Diligence Conference Takes Music Cityby Kate@FactRight.com (Kate Stephany) on August 31, 2022 at 6:46 pm
We came, we saw, we diligenced.
- What is ESG and Where is it Headed?by Julie Olsen on July 27, 2022 at 6:36 pm
Background
- Evaluating Cap Rates Through a Due Diligence Lensby kevin@factright.com (Kevin Kirkeby) on July 13, 2022 at 4:27 pm
I’m going to get this out of the way right now. I don’t know where cap rates will end this year, and certainly can’t predict where they will be in five years or in ten. What I do know is that cap rate compression has provided a notable tailwind to real estate performance for the past several years. With cap rates for most real estate sectors touching record lows during fourth quarter 2021, I also know that investors should be more closely analyzing each driver of projected investment returns and determining the margin for error embedded in each one. It seems unlikely that cap rates will be below current levels in five or ten years when investment programs currently on offer are looking for an exit.