Al Vardy of Raintree has a vast knowledge of non-conventional private equity investment possibilities, with a variety of risk levels. In the past, I have invested in his products and I have sought his counsel often. I am satisfied to the extent that I have recommended him to my friends and family.
Good solid advice and options that you can't get from other advisors. Their investments require a bit more depth, but I'd recommend everyone call just to see what have and if it might suit them. They recently started offering public market investments as well.
I have had the pleasure of working with Matt Hammond at Raintree financial. Matt is one of the most ethical guys I have ever dealt with. I know, right?! A financial advisor that is honest? It is possible. I'm new to the world of financial investing, especially when it comes to exempt Market securities. I had actually never really thought of them as an option before, but Matt was able to show me a very diverse portfolio that made sense for me financially in the long run. I became very eager to dip more than just a toe and started asking Matt about the Cannabis fund he was managing. Matt put the brakes on right there and told me that based on his knowledge of my ultra low risk personality, that that was not going to be a good fit, and that it was too much too soon. Can you believe it? A guy who actually told me not to throw money at something when he had the opportunity to make a commission on it? Truly, making a financial plan that matches the risk tolerance of his clients is his number one priority. I would highly recommend working with Matt Hammond.
I started investing with Raintree nearly 8 years ago. People I've dealt with are pleasant, however I have not had a good investment experience by any stretch. At this point in time, 8 years in I've been working hard to get as much as I can out as possible, however the time horizons on many investments are long (and get longer)... In 8 years total, I have not made a dime, in fact, in aggregate, I've lost money, as several investments either were written down, changed, or otherwise devalued. In asking for additional help in how to get out of other remaining investments, the responses are never particularly helpful.
My advice would be to stay away. In the same period of time that I've had investments lose value with Raintree, I've more than doubled in other, more conservative investments on a more conventional basis.
*Edit: Please be aware that some 5 star reviews might be from workers/family.
Do YOU want to retire? then please, trust me and stay away! I could have retired if I had NOT invested with Raintree's investments.
Watch out, they offer you the "potential" for large gains but EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE INVESTMENTS that they recommended have lost money. Multiple investments of 50,000$ + have been decimated and left in the low 2,000$. If you're seriously considering going with them, I would BEG YOU to reconsider and invest elsewhere.
They make money FROM YOUR PURCHASES, so it doesn't matter to them if you make money or lose money in the long term because they have already cashed out. (In fact my advisor took my money and then quit when the investment crashed)
If you want to get your money out, YOU CAN'T. Why? because the investments they offer have very low liquidity, so nobody would buy your shares of a failing company.
Additionally, once your portfolio drops bellow an arbitrary number (it appears along the lines of 200,000$) they basically don't care about you as a client since you won't be bringing them much money in the long run.
Perhaps I'm a little angry, and justifiably so. Had I not given my money to Raintree FInancial Solutions I could have retired by now. Unfortunately, I'm still working, and paying yearly fees to hold onto worthless investments.
Look at the other 1 Star reviews, do you think it won't happen to you? How are you going to know if you have a good investment? Because they told you it was a good one? They did that with every other person who rated 1 star, and we all lost money. You know what didn't lose money? The stock market, Vanguard funds, Brookfield management, those guys have made money. Please, save your money, and don't go with this business.
Would stay far far away from this company. I wish i had done more due diligence on Raintree. Super high risk and they will make the fund sound good and so called bullet proof but it will become worthless. See the attached picture of a solar income fund that has become valued at $0!. This company is selling junk investments. Would NOT recommend whatsoever. These guys are absolute scammers
Don't invest I lost $50,000 and nobody will explain what's going on. Don't trust them!!
Working with Dean Pollard from Raintree financial has been amazing. He is concise, knows his stuff and takes the time to explains the pros and cons of any investment he is offering.
He even shares his personal successes and is happy to give advice on how to achieve financial freedom.
Troy is a real gem and I would highly recommend him to my family and friends.
Raintree Financial Solutions is an amazing team. Each member I ve had the opportunity to interact with has been extremely professional. Great service.
Dean Pollard from Raintree Financial has been working with me for many years. He is very knowledgeable and works diligently to make my investments work for me in the best possible way! Thank you!
Great service by good people trying hard to make our money work for us. It s private equity so higher risk, but their staff works hard to try to mitigate that risks whenever possible.
Raintree has a diligent and skilled team that does everything it can to ensure that the companies they recommend to their clients have been thoroughly vetted. I believe that few investments go exactly as planned/advertised but with Raintree there is a caring, committed, and experienced team to work with investors through tougher situations when they arise. You might do well investing directly in the stock market or you might not - it's the same here. If you can do both, then it's worth adding some diversity into your portfolio to reduce your overall risk. I think that Raintree is one of the best companies through which to expand an investment portfolio beyond traditional stocks and bonds.
I have been investing with Raintree since 2012. Having access to exempt market investments gave me the ability to broaden my investment portfolio and invest directly in Canadian and American companies and projects. I'm happy with Raintree and will continue to include investments through Raintree in my portfolio.
I began investing through Raintree in 2014, and benefited tremendously from the attentive and education-centred approach my advisor took in working with me. My financial literacy grew rapidly over the years as I continued on the journey of taking control of my finances and my future. I've now chosen to pursue a career working as an advisor with Raintree myself- and I owe this opportunity to the patience, time and engagement my advisor offered me over the years. I now look forward to providing the same caring and engaged service for my own clients, with the support of Raintree. Their corporate culture strongly emphasizes integrity, and the best interest of clients, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Our former Raintree advisors Michael Kowalchuk and Carl Brodie recommended 2 investments that caused our net personal wealth to decline by 30%. Now we are 64 & 65 years old with $150,000 debt. When we met them at age 60 we had $0 debt and money in the bank. Redstone Investments (96% of capital lost), and Westpoint (60% dilution of purchase price to date and dropping). Now that these two guys are no longer with Raintree, we have been abandoned. Very poor customer service, no follow up / follow through, and no due diligence on behalf of their clients. Disappointing is an understatement of the highest order.
Matthew Hammond is an excellent advisor for this company. Straightforward and will discuss all your options and investments to suit the client. Highly recommended.
These so called investments are high risk. Actually extremely high risk. They take 9% up front fees and run to the bank with their portion and leave you with failing investments. The promised payouts and dividends fail and you are stuck with investments that are not liquid. Very sketchy people. BEWARE.
Dean in Winnipeg is always quick to respond and knows his products. Very helpful guy
Weston and his team made applying for and finding the right insurance for our corporate life insurance policies easy - we were guided every step of the way and we are 100% satisfied with the work he and his team have done for us. Thank you Weston and Mel!
I have lost most of the money I invested with this company. Also, no way you can get money out of their investments. Even my bank had a difficult time understanding that. Stay away!
Raintree has opened a completely new world of investment to me, providing asset-based investments that I can have confidence in, that offers my portfolio a much needed isolation from the volatility of the public markets.
As an amateur retail investor managing his own self-directed portfolio I found the opportunities offered in the exempt markets to be a welcome relief from the vagaries of the stock market. Nothing is for certain but I feel safer investing in bricks and mortar over paper. Raintree has performed very well and I will continue to invest with them.
Great experience so far with Raintree. Have been very happy with my local person as well as my dealings with head office. Very friendly and knowledgeable group, offering great unique investing opportunities not before available to most of us.
My experience with Raintree has been primarily through Al Vardy who I have found to be a very knowledgeable and honest investment professional. I consider myself to be a reasonably knowledgeable investor and Al's feedback on multiple occasions has provided me additional investment insight that I value tremendously! Al has given me lots of great advice (some of it not at all to do with Raintree's products) and I trust him enough that I have invested with Raintree and even recommended them to my friends and family. There certainly are some fantastic products at Raintree that has helped me further diversify and grow my portfolio.
The representatives that I've worked with, Al Vardy and Mike Rogers have been very informative, professional and helpful. I have recommended Raintree to a number of friends and acquaintances, some of whom have contacted Al. I will continue to refer people I think can benefit from Raintree and the products they represent knowing the representatives that they will deal with are professional and knowledgeable.
My wife and I are very pleased with Matt Hammond. He met with us at a time convenient for us was very professional and clear while explaining everything and was very easy to deal with. My wife and I now have peace of mind and a plan for our future thanks to Matt, something that is truly priceless.
Great experience overall. Our advisor Mark is attentive, detail orientated, breaks down complicated issues and makes sure my wife and I understand everything before proceeding. He also ensures products are the best fit for our family. Highly recommend.
Rick at Raintree knows his job and helped me understand how Raintree investments work. It's very different then other envestments, bigger risks and better rewards. I would recommend Raintree to thoughts who are looking to invest but in a different and better way. They have a few investment opportunities to choose from and Rick will guild you to the one that best suits you. This is a great way to make money.
I have been quite happy with my investments at Raintree, their team is easy to reach and very knowledgeable. I am actually moving move of my portfolio under their management and they have many great investment opportunities..
I've been working with Raintree since 2012, and my knowledge about non-market investing has increased tremendously and I am much more confident and feel more in control of my financial future.
I've dealt with Al Vardy and Adrian Morgan and both individuals have been very knowledgeable and professional when discussing various investment options. I've appreciated the knowledge and advice that they have both shared with me regarding the private equity opportunities and the Raintree Wealth investment approach. Highly recommend both of these individuals.
I have had the pleasure of working with Matt! He has been really great throughout the whole process. Matt took the time with me to sit down and explain my options and go over where I was currently at. He was patient and waited until I was ready to move forward. Matt was great at constantly following up! He ended up saving me a lot of money that would have been thrown away down the road due to expensive fees. He is a very honest, reliable and all around great person! Matt should be your go to guy when it comes to trusting someone with your money and for all it's worth. Don't hesitate to reach out to him, you won't be disappointed!
STAY AWAY!!! Great sales pitch...devastating long term results. I invested over the last 14 years now ALL my investments are practically worthless and I am left paying costly trust company fees. Do not make the same mistake and loose your family's wealth. It starts off great and ends in a disaster.
I have been with Raintree for about a year now, my wife and I are pleased with our investments and extremely happy with the service provided by our Advisor, Al Vardy.
I've always enjoyed my experiences with Raintree and their advisors. They provide clarity and in-depth information on the investment options available and support me making well-informed decisions.
Working with Raintree Financial Services and Weston has been fantastic. They really took the time to help me step back, and understand my financial picture, and from there put strategies in place that both helped me move towards my financial goals as well as increase my overall cash flow.
Matthew Hammond at Rain Tree has to be one of the most dishonest people i have ever met. I had a close friend who did business with him and i wouldn't trust him with 5 dollars let alone a larger some. Private wealth investor i wouldn't trust the guy to babysit my dog. If you are desperate to go broke and be lied to your face this is the place otherwise your better off trusting the Nigerian scam artists.
My gross lack of knowledge regarding investments together with the challenges I faced with separation & divorce placed me in a sea of enormous uncertainty. Sandra & Al were my compass during that storm. Together, their knowledge & expertise in the financial world guided me through those rough waters. Thanks to Sandra & Al, I am now sailing in calm waters towards a beautiful horizon.
Bev Banks
I am extremely happy to say working with Mark Ameerali with Raintree Frinancial for the last 2.5 years has given me a higher than expected return on my funds and sense of 'comfort' knowing I am in good hands. Mark is money smart, honest and reliable!
My wife and I were lucky enough to be introduced to ilan Handelsman and Raintree Financial Solutions a number of years back. We were looking for a different approach to investing and ilan was a breath of fresh air. My wife and I are cautious people and ilan showed immense patience and care as we worked through developing our understanding of private investments. As we grew our understanding and portfolio, our trust in ilan and everything he helped us with the relationship deepened. We are honoured to work with ilan and the Raintree team and to call ilan a true friend as well! And our investments are well allocated, diversified and doing very well too.
raintreefs.com
