The ESG era is winding down, leaving behind a vacuum and a lesson. The vacuum is a real opportunity; the lesson is that impact language without impact infrastructure does not work, and investors who bought the label without examining the substance paid for both failures. Steven Libman, founder of Investing With Purpose™, has spent 15 years building a faith-driven multifamily investment model in which community impact is an operating system, not a marketing claim.
ESG reminded investors that investing is not neutral. “It made people start to realize – oh, my investment matters,” Libman says. “It is not just a neutral act.” That realization was genuine, but the execution collapsed under contradictions. ESG tried to build a universal moral scorecard for a diverse investor base, becoming political and vague. Fund managers applied the label inconsistently, and investors had no reliable way to evaluate whether an ESG designation meant anything. “You could really slap an ESG label on almost anything,” says Libman. “But where was the measurable impact?” Returns confirmed the problem: below-benchmark performance with limited verifiable impact. The implicit bargain – accept lower returns for meaningful impact – was a bad deal on both sides.
Libman’s alternative treats community investment as upstream of financial performance. The on-site Purposed Care Initiative (PCI) within his multifamily properties drives measurable outcomes: turnover falls when residents feel cared for, delinquency improves, reputation scores rise, and staff morale strengthens. “Caring is not charity,” says Libman. “It is a strategy. Better communities create better assets, and better assets create better investments.” The model tracks standard real estate KPIs – net operating income, occupancy, expense ratios – alongside Purposed Care Indicators (PCIs) such as resident events, pastoral care connections, and acts of service. This dual-track accountability structure is something ESG funds never managed to build.
“We do not want to be ESG with a cross on it,” says Libman. “We offer real disciplined investing with real underwriting and real returns, but coupled with real care and real accountability.” With ESG in retreat, the space it occupied is open. Libman’s view is straightforward: investors with conviction, not consultants with acronyms, should fill it. The framework rests on biblical stewardship, transparency, purposed impact, and excellent investment discipline. Whether this gains traction beyond faith-driven firms remains to be seen, but the demand for something more rigorous is growing.
