Content
- Can I invest through the CrowdStreet Marketplace?
- Am I an accredited investor?
- What do I need prior to investing through the Marketplace?
- How do I invest? What’s the process?
- Am I able to invest using the proceeds from a 1031 exchange?
- Are investors charged fees? How does CrowdStreet earn revenue?
- What’s CrowdStreet’s track record?
- How does a deal make it onto your Marketplace?
- Are investments made through CrowdStreet guaranteed?
- What is the investment minimum? Is there an early exit option?
Can I invest through the CrowdStreet Marketplace?
You can invest through the CrowdStreet Marketplace provided you are:
- An accredited investor, and
- A U.S. Citizen or Resident Alien with valid green card, and
- A U.S. Resident, or
- Are a U.S.-registered entity.
CrowdStreet will also review and approve your account with respect to anti-money laundering laws to ensure you are eligible to invest.
You can make investments as an individual, jointly with a spouse, or through an IRA (subject to sponsor limitations), trust, or entity.
Am I an accredited investor?
Did you know that accreditation is a definition, not a process? Accredited investors, as defined by the SEC, are those who meet the criteria to participate in certain private capital market deals. Generally, an individual person is considered an accredited investor if you meet one of the following requirements:
- You have a pre-tax income exceeding $200,000 annually for the past two years ($300,000 jointly with a spouse or spousal equivalent) with the expectation of that continuing in the next year.
- You have a net worth of more than $1,000,000, either alone or with a spouse or spousal equivalent, excluding the value of the primary residence.
- You hold certain professional certifications, designations, and licenses that are active and in good standing. This is usually Series 7, Series 82, and Series 65 holders.
For more information on accreditation, especially the accreditation criteria for trusts and other business entities, visit our Help Center article: Accreditation overview.
What do I need prior to investing through the Marketplace?
Before you can invest through the Marketplace, you need to:
- Ensure all fields are completed within your profile.
- Including a copy of a valid government-issued photo ID.
- Create an Investing Account(s)
- Make sure you sign the Account Agreement for the Investing Account. CrowdStreet will then review your account for approval.
- If investing through a trust or entity, you need to provide the trust or formation documents.
- Provide documentation of your accreditation status.
We suggest you:
- Complete your profile and create your Investing Account(s) as soon as possible. This may help prevent delays when you’re ready to invest.
- Prove your accreditation status.
Within the ‘accreditation verification’ tab of your Investing Account, you will be provided the following options- CrowdStreet Investor Relations can review your accreditation status directly.
- Upload financials and documentation to show proof of your accredited status based on the requirements summarized above.
- You can provide a letter from your own licensed CPA, licensed attorney, or registered wealth advisor attesting to your status as an accredited investor. The uploaded letter must:
- Be signed and dated by a qualified third-party; AND
- Explicitly state the providers qualifications (ex, “I am a registered CPA in the State of [ ], license #”); AND
- explicitly state that the investor/entity is an accredited investor (as defined by Rule 501a).
If a template is helpful, please find one here:
Investor Verification Letter Template. Please note that third-party letters are only valid for 90 days from date of issuance.
Per SEC Rule 230.506(c)(2)(C), before accepting an investor into an offering, sponsors must obtain written proof of an investor’s accreditation status from a qualified third-party. If a third-party letter is provided, this will be passed to the sponsor directly and must be dated within the past 90 days.
As a qualified party, CrowdStreet can maintain your financial documents for one year and use those to continuously confirm your accredited status every 90 days to sponsors. After a year, we will need updated financial documents for review. - Read through our Investor Quick Start Guide to learn more about CrowdStreet. You can also contact our Investor Relations team at help@crowdstreet.com. They’re happy to answer your questions.
How do I invest? What’s the process?
While the following might differ slightly for a CrowdStreet Advisors-managed investment, these are the typical stages in the offer process:
- Deal evaluation period: This is the period, usually about a week, that the deal is listed on the Marketplace but not yet accepting offers. During this time, investors are encouraged to conduct their due diligence by reading through the detail page and associated documents, and registering for the live webinar and Q&A with the sponsor..
- You can also reach the sponsor with questions by using the Questions? box on the right-hand side of the detail page.
- Submit an offer: To invest, you must first submit an offer by clicking the Invest Now button at the top right-hand-side of the page that goes live 30 minutes into the scheduled webinar and Q&A. While most offer minimums are $25K, offers up to $2M can be submitted.
- Select your Investing Account: Select the Investing Account you want to invest with. This is also a great time to update any missing information and to check your accreditation verification.
- Sign your documents: At a specified time, usually 5:00 PM Pacific Time (PT) on the day that the investing window opens, you can sign the offer documents. Document submission date and time determines the order in which offers are accepted and whether or not you get into the deal if it oversubscribes.
- Fund your investment: Funding instructions are sent when your documents are reviewed and you’re approved to fund. Once you send funds, the sponsor will countersign your documents; you’re invested!
For a more in-depth look at our offer process and what happens at each stage, check out this article: Offer process overview.
Am I able to invest using the proceeds from a 1031 exchange?
The deals that are on the CrowdStreet Marketplace are structured in such a way that generally do not make a 1031 exchange possible as you cannot exchange from a personally disposed-of property into a passive Marketplace investment because the Marketplace interests are generally not “like kind” property for purposes of the 1031 exchange rules.
Are investors charged fees? How does CrowdStreet earn revenue?
CrowdStreet charges a per-investment technology fee; it currently does not charge investors a commission. Refer to the Fees tab on the deal page, as well as the Operating Agreement in the Documents section. The sponsor may allocate CrowdStreet’s fees as a project or entity expense, meaning the fees charged by CrowdStreet are ultimately borne by CrowdStreet investors.
CrowdStreet earns revenue in a few different ways:
- CrowdStreet charges sponsors for use of the CrowdStreet Marketplace and associated technologies. The fees vary by deal, and generally last through the life of the investment. The Sponsor may pass those fees onto the project (or directly to you) thereby reducing cash available for distribution to you.
- If you choose to work with CrowdStreet Advisors, or invest in a CrowdStreet Advisors investment vehicle (i.e. a fund), CrowdStreet Advisors charges a management fee. Investors may also bear the technology fee, if the issuer passes those fees on to the investor.
What’s CrowdStreet’s track record?
For information on how the CrowdStreet Marketplace and realized deals have performed, visit the Marketplace Performance page.
For information on the track record of the sponsor presenting a specific deal, refer to the section labeled The Sponsor on each offering’s detail page.
Please keep in mind that past performance is not indicative of future results or success.
How does a deal make it onto your Marketplace?
Every deal, and the sponsor(s) behind it, undergoes the same review process for inclusion on our Marketplace.
First, we evaluate the sponsor’s background and track record to evaluate the sponsor’s capability to execute their business plan and provide investors with a high degree of professionalism. Second, we evaluate the sponsor’s proposed investment opportunity to ensure that it aligns with the sponsors’ background and with Marketplace investor preferences. Third, we review and analyze the terms of the proposed deal and associated documents. We then provide our decision to the sponsor to either adjust to comply, or reject any deal that does not meet our criteria.
Learn more about our sponsors and deal review process here: Deal Review.
Are investments made through CrowdStreet guaranteed?
No, investment performance cannot be guaranteed. In fact, investing in commercial real estate entails substantive risk. An investment in a private placement is highly speculative and involves a high degree of risk, including the risk of loss of the entire investment. You should not invest unless you can sustain the risk of total loss of capital. Private placements are illiquid investments and are intended for investors who do not need a liquid investment. All investors should consider their individual factors in consultation with a professional advisor of their choosing when deciding if an investment is appropriate.
What is the investment minimum? Is there an early exit option?
For most deals on the CrowdStreet Marketplace, the minimum investment amount is $25,000, though this may vary. The minimum for CrowdStreet Advisors-managed products are: C-REIT: $25,000 and Thematic Funds: varies but typically $100,000+.
Since private real estate investments are generally illiquid, investors are normally unable to sell their investment, unlike liquid or traded securities. Any hold periods listed on the CrowdStreet Marketplace are target hold periods; hold periods are subject to change and no hold period is guaranteed.