EquityMultiple Review: Legit Real Estate Crowdfunding Platform?
EquityMultiple is a well-established and highly reputable crowdfunding platform for real estate investors. EquityMultiple was founded in 2015 by experienced tech entrepreneurs who recognized the potential of online real estate investing and set out to build the most user-friendly experience in the industry. EquityMultiple has since become one of the most popular platforms for accredited investors looking to invest in pre-vetted real estate deals. In this EquityMultiple review, we’ll take a look at what EquityMultiple is, how it works, who can use it, what we like about it, and what we don’t like.
History of EquityMultiple
EquityMultiple was founded in 2015 by a team of experienced tech entrepreneurs: Charles Clinton, Jordan Ray, Marious Sjulsen and William Tobin. With headquarters in New York City, the company’s mission is to make online real estate investing more accessible and user-friendly for accredited investors.
Clinton is EquityMultiple’s CEO. Prior to EquityMultiple, Clinton was the co-founder and COO of Food52, a food media company that was acquired by Time Inc. in 2015. Clinton has also worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, where he advised clients in the technology, retail and consumer goods industries.
Ray, EquityMultiple’s CTO, was previously the co-founder and CTO of Borrower, an online lending platform for student loans. Ray has also worked as a software engineer at Google and Microsoft.
Sjulsen, EquityMultiple’s Head of Capital Markets, has over 15 years of experience in real estate private equity, investment banking and capital markets. Prior to EquityMultiple, Sjulsen was a Managing Director at Citigroup, where he advised clients on over $50 billion of real estate transactions.
Tobin, EquityMultiple’s Head of Investor Relations, was previously the co-founder and CEO of Borrower, an online lending platform for student loans. Tobin has also worked as an analyst at Goldman Sachs.
As for the company’s name, the word “equity” refers to ownership in a property, and the word “multiple” refers to the return on investment that an investor can expect to earn from their equity stake. Together, these words encapsulate EquityMultiple’s mission to provide accredited investors with the opportunity to earn attractive returns by investing in pre-vetted real estate deals.
What is crowdfunding?
Crowdfunding is a way of raising capital from a large group of people, typically through an online platform. EquityMultiple is a crowdfunding platform for accredited investors looking to invest in pre-vetted real estate deals. EquityMultiple allows investors to spread their investment across multiple properties, which helps to mitigate risk.
How EquityMultiple works
EquityMultiple is an online platform that connects accredited investors with pre-vetted real estate deals. EquityMultiple’s team of experienced professionals vet and curate a selection of high-quality real estate investment opportunities, which are then made available to accredited investors on the EquityMultiple platform.
Once an investor has signed up for a free account on EquityMultiple, they can browse through the available investment opportunities and select the ones that they’re interested in. EquityMultiple provides detailed information about each opportunity, including photos, property descriptions, expected returns, risk factors and more.
Once an investor has selected an opportunity, they can complete the investment process entirely online. EquityMultiple’s platform makes it easy to track your investments and monitor your progress. You can also choose to receive email updates about your investments or login to the EquityMultiple platform at any time to check in.
EquityMultiple features
EquityMultiple offers a number of features that make it an attractive choice for accredited investors.
- Accredited investors only: EquityMultiple is only open to accredited investors, which helps to ensure that the platform’s users are sophisticated and experienced.
- Pre-vetted investment opportunities: EquityMultiple’s team of experienced professionals vet and curate a selection of high-quality real estate investment opportunities, which are then made available to accredited investors on the EquityMultiple platform.
- Detailed information about each opportunity: EquityMultiple provides detailed information about each opportunity, including photos, property descriptions, expected returns, risk factors and more.
- Easy to track your investments: EquityMultiple’s platform makes it easy to track your investments and monitor your progress. You can also choose to receive email updates about your investments or login to the EquityMultiple platform at any time to check in.
- High investment minimum: EquityMultiple requires a minimum investment of $100,000, which helps to ensure that only serious and experienced investors are using the platform.
- Attractive returns: EquityMultiple offers the potential for attractive returns, with many opportunities offering expected annual returns of 12% or more.
- A variety of investment structures: EquityMultiple offers a variety of investment structures, including joint ventures, preferred equity, and mezzanine debt.
- Flexible investment terms: EquityMultiple’s investment terms are flexible, with most opportunities offering a term of three to five years.
- Easy-to-use platform: EquityMultiple’s platform is easy to use, with a clean and intuitive interface.
What are EquityMultiple’s fees?
EquityMultiple charges a standard management fee of 0.75% on all investments. EquityMultiple also charges a success fee equal to 20% of the profits earned on an investment, once the investment has been sold or refinanced.
For example, let's say you invest $100,000 in an EquityMultiple deal that generates a total return of $150,000. EquityMultiple would keep 20% of the profits ($30,000), and you would keep the remaining 80% ($120,000).
What are the ways to invest with EquityMultiple?
EquityMultiple offers a number of different ways to invest, including joint ventures, preferred equity, and mezzanine debt.
- Joint ventures: EquityMultiple’s joint venture investment opportunities typically involve the development or redevelopment of a property. In a joint venture partnership, EquityMultiple works with experienced developers to provide the capital needed to complete a project.
- Preferred equity: EquityMultiple’s preferred equity investment opportunities are typically for properties that are already completed and generating income. In a preferred equity partnership, EquityMultiple provides the capital needed to purchase or refinance a property, and in exchange, EquityMultiple receives a fixed rate of return as well as a percentage of the profits when the property is sold.
- Mezzanine debt: EquityMultiple’s mezzanine debt investment opportunities are typically for properties that are already completed and generating income. In a mezzanine debt partnership, EquityMultiple provides the capital needed to purchase or refinance a property, and in exchange, EquityMultiple receives a fixed rate of return as well as a percentage of the profits when the property is sold.
EquityMultiple also offers syndicated investment opportunities, which are typically large real estate projects that are too expensive for any one investor to finance on their own. In a syndicated investment, EquityMultiple works with a group of investors to provide the capital needed to complete a project.
What are the benefits of investing with EquityMultiple?
EquityMultiple offers a number of benefits for investors, including:
- Detailed information about each opportunity: EquityMultiple provides detailed information about each opportunity, including photos, property descriptions, expected returns, risk factors and more.
- Easy to track your investments: EquityMultiple makes it easy to track your investments, with a dashboard that shows you the status of each investment, as well as your total portfolio value.
- A team of experienced professionals: EquityMultiple has a team of experienced professionals who work with each investor to ensure that they are making the best possible investment choices.
- A wide variety of investment opportunities: EquityMultiple offers a wide variety of investment opportunities, so you can find an opportunity that fits your investment goals.
- A commitment to transparency: EquityMultiple is committed to transparency, and all investors have access to the same information about each opportunity.
What are the risks of investing with EquityMultiple?
As with any investment, there are risks involved with investing with EquityMultiple. These risks include:
- The risk of loss: EquityMultiple investments are typically illiquid, meaning that you may not be able to sell your investment for a period of time. In addition, the value of your investment may go up or down, and you could lose money.
- The risk of fraud: EquityMultiple is a relatively new company, and there is always the risk of fraud with any new investment.
- The risk of bad decisions: EquityMultiple offers a lot of information about each opportunity, but it is ultimately up to the investor to make the decision about whether or not to invest. If you make a bad investment decision, you could lose money.
- The risk of not being diversified: EquityMultiple investments are typically real estate projects, which means that your investment portfolio may not be as diversified as it could be.
- The risk of illiquidity: EquityMultiple investments are typically illiquid, meaning that you may not be able to sell your investment for a period of time.
- The risk of leverage: EquityMultiple often uses leverage to finance investments, which means that the company can lose money if the value of the underlying asset goes down.
Who can invest in EquityMultiple?
In order to be eligible to invest in EquityMultiple, you must be an accredited investor. An accredited investor is defined as an individual with a net worth of $200,000 (or $300,000 if married) or an annual income of $200,000 (or $300,000 if married) for the past two years. EquityMultiple also offers investment opportunities to non-accredited investors in some cases.
How do I get started with EquityMultiple?
If you’re interested in investing with EquityMultiple, the first step is to create an account and complete the accreditation process. Once you’re accredited, you’ll be able to browse the EquityMultiple website and invest in any of the available opportunities.
Who is EquityMultiple best for?
EquityMultiple is a good choice for accredited investors who are looking for an easy-to-use platform with a wide variety of investment opportunities. EquityMultiple is also a good choice for investors who are looking for a more hands-off approach to investing, as the EquityMultiple team manages each investment on behalf of the investor.
Who is EquityMultiple not for?
EquityMultiple is not a good choice for investors who are not accredited, as most of the investment opportunities on the EquityMultiple website are only available to accredited investors.
EquityMultiple is also not a good choice for investors who want more control over their investments, as the EquityMultiple team makes all investment decisions on behalf of the investor.
What we like about EquityMultiple
There are a few things that we really like about EquityMultiple, including:
- EquityMultiple has a sleek, user-friendly interface that makes it easy to find and invest in opportunities.
- The EquityMultiple team is experienced and dedicated to transparency, which we think is important for any investment platform.
- EquityMultiple has a wide variety of investment opportunities, which we think is great for investors who want to diversify their portfolios.
What we don’t like about EquityMultiple
There are a few things that we don’t like about EquityMultiple, including:
- The minimum investment amount on EquityMultiple is $5,000, which we think is a bit high.
- EquityMultiple is only available to accredited investors, which means that most people won’t be able to use the platform.
- The EquityMultiple team makes all investment decisions on behalf of the investor, which means that investors have no control over their investments.
Alternatives to EquityMultiple
If you’re not sure if EquityMultiple is right for you, there are a few other crowdfunding platforms that you can check out, including:
- RealtyMogul
- Fundrise
- Peer
- PeerStreet
- Groundfloor
Is EquityMultiple legitimate?
Yes, EquityMultiple is a legitimate crowdfunding platform. EquityMultiple is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). EquityMultiple is also a member of the National Crowdfunding Association (NCFA), which is a self-regulatory organization that promotes best practices in the crowdfunding industry.
Do we recommend EquityMultiple?
EquityMultiple is a solid choice for real estate investors who are looking for a crowdfunding platform. The company offers a wide variety of investment opportunities, detailed information about each opportunity, and a commitment to transparency. EquityMultiple is also a good choice for investors who are looking for a more hands-off approach to investing, as the EquityMultiple team manages each investment on behalf of the investor. However, EquityMultiple is only available to accredited investors, which means that most people won’t be able to use the platform.
If you’re an accredited investor who is interested in crowdfunding, EquityMultiple is a platform that you should definitely check out.
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