

That can mean lower dividend yields, but it also means far greater potential for share price appreciation.

Crowdfunding platforms don’t need to return 90% of profits to shareholders each year, and can reinvest them to keep growing their portfolios. The second difference is that the SEC regulates crowdfunded REITs differently than publicly-traded REITs. You can usually sell shares back to them before then, but at a discounted price.

In fact, most real estate crowdfunding platforms require you to hold shares for at least five years. They don’t move in sync with stock indexes, so they provide real diversification. That makes them far less liquid, and also far less volatile. First, they don’t trade on public stock exchanges - you buy shares directly from the crowdfunding platform. However, they come with two distinct differences. The most common type of real estate crowdfunding investments work similarly to REITs: pooled funds that own real estate directly or lend money secured against real properties. Just understand that publicly-traded REITs don’t provide much in the way of diversification.ģ. As a starting point for investing in real estate, consider these top REITs for beginners. In short, publicly-traded REITs make for easy, liquid real estate investments that you can buy with $1,000 dollars or $10. By late May 2021, share prices in VNQ hadn’t even fully recovered their 2020 peak, despite such strength in US housing markets. From March 2020 to March 2021, US home values actually rose 13.3% per the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index. But US real estate values didn’t fall at all - quite the opposite. In the pandemic-induced stock market crash of 2020, shares fell 44%. That largely defeats the purpose of diversifying into another asset class.Ĭonsider VNQ, the Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares, with broad exposure to US REITs. Because they trade on public stock exchanges, they tend to move in disturbing correlation with stock indexes. In turn, that limits their growth potential. That keeps their dividends high, but it also makes it hard for REITs to reinvest their profits and build their portfolios. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires all publicly-traded REITs to pay out at least 90% of their profits each year to shareholders, in the form of dividends. You can buy and sell instantly, unlike brick-and-mortar real estate that takes months to buy or sell.Īnd you can buy with an extra $100 sitting in your bank account collecting dust, so there’s no financial barrier to entry.Ī combined strength and weakness of publicly-traded REITs is their dividend yield.

These companies trade on public stock exchanges, which makes them extremely liquid. The most traditional option on this list, anyone can buy shares of real estate investment trusts (REITs) through their regular brokerage account. Like Arrived Homes, you earn quarterly dividends on the cash flow generated from each investment property.īoth platforms allow non-accredited investors, making it easy for you to build a diversified portfolio without committing thousands of dollars to any individual property. They let you buy fractional shares in apartment buildings, parking garages, mixed-use buildings, and other alternative investment properties that you wouldn’t be able to afford on your own. If you prefer commercial or mixed-use properties, try Lex Markets. After five to seven years, they sell the property, and you collect your share of the profits. The minimum initial investment: just $100 per property.Įach quarter, Arrived Homes pays out dividends to you based on the net rental income collected for the property. They buy single-family rental properties in suburban neighborhoods across the United States, and you can buy shares in those properties at $10 increments. The best known of these is Arrived Homes. Several platforms let you buy fractional shares of individual properties. The following types of real estate investments don’t require much cash, allowing you to get started with just $1,000 to invest. But in today’s world, you have plenty of options to invest $1,000 in real estate without hassling with 20% down payments. Borrow the Down Payment with Credit Lines
