We are all about finding the smartest, modern ways to invest our hard earned cash. Often times we also look for the leanest and most efficient ways to invest. This allows us to spend more of our time developing skills and reinvesting in ourselves where we can make huge returns!
With the internet and technology, this has never been easier to invest your money with complete transparency and minimal maintenance. We’ve risked our money in dozens of investment vehicles and studied the results closely. Here are some of our favorite ways to invest in Real Estate.
Fundrise – Before we had Ben Miller, the CEO of Fundrise on the show back in Episode 12, we had already deployed an investment in Fundrise’s Growth eREIT.
Their REIT is private, thereby cutting out all the worthless fat out of those you can buy on the public markets. This allows Fundrise REITs to offer a superior yield averaging a whopping 8 -15%! Some of their equity (Growth) REITs are even projected to yield higher than that annually when held until the eventual liquidity of the fund. Investors receive regular updates on the funds growth and performance, and quarterly distributors are paid out in cash. We have found this an amazing, modern way to invest in Real Estate without having the hassle of being a landlord. You can invest into Fundrise for as little as $1,000 with this link. We also recommend you to join their list and stay up to date with their funds and progress.
PeerSteet – One of our first and favorite platforms we started looking into. When we heard Brett Crosby was the co-founder, we knew something special was “under the hood”. Brett famously created Urchin, which later became Google Analytics and the rest is history.
Brett joined us in Episode 13, and we were immediately hooked on what PeerStreet had to offer. Through the platform, investors loan their money to borrowers with the loan secured by the underlying asset – the property. They have a beautifully simple UI that allows anyone to get setup and into their first deal in minutes. Typical yields are 7% – 9%, and payouts are monthly. One of the things we love most about PeerStreet many of the loan terms are less than 12 months, making the loan secured, short term and high yielding… that really hard to beat. You can invest as little at $1,000 on PeerStreet and get a 1% yield bump on your first loan with this link.
Vanguard (All REIT Index) – If you are new to investing, and want test something out that is massively diversified and has instant liquidity, we recommend buying a total REIT fund similar to Vanguards. Public REIT funds give you broad exposure to real estate in a tax-efficient structure.
As an owner of a REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust), you actually own shares in a company that owns or leases huge quantities of properties, and collects rent on your behalf. 90% of net revenues are then distributed to shareholders like yourself. If you do not have access to Vanguard, fear not, there are REIT index funds available just about everywhere and you can find great alternatives in just a couple of minutes, such as iShares U.S Real Estate ETF (IYR). Be cautioned, public REITS are subject to market volatility, so you carry share price risk when you invest in their funds. If you’d like to open a vanguard account, you can do so here.
CrowdStreet – A crowdsourcing platform connecting investors with Main Street investment real estate opportunities.
CEO Tore Steen joined us on Episode 53 and opened our eyes to the opportunities available to individual investors in commercial real estate. CrowdStreet operates the largest online marketplace for commercial real estate investments. The CrowdStreet Marketplace specializes in institutional-quality CRE investment offerings and enables individual investors to access industry-leading deal flow completely free of charge (project sponsors cover all fees). CrowdStreet stands out for their unwavering focus on equity commercial real estate investments, no single family fix-and-flips here, and have transacted more than $3 billion in CRE project value through their platform. Typical yields are 8-12% with monthly payouts, with additional yield coming with the liquidation of the asset at the end of each holding period. Typical holding periods range from 3-5 years with total investor IRRs between 15%-25%.