Stepping Stone into Syndications?

[Troy P.]

Good morning all,

I'll try to keep this concise without ramblind too much. My current REI investments consist of a small number of buy and hold SFH properties. They're cash flowing well and I thought this would be my primary strategy moving forward. After dealing with some of your typical "active" REI issues, I've been tossing around the idea of moving into a more passive role. I'm becoming more familiar with the concept of syndications but don't quite meet the minimum requirements to be considered accredited. My main goals are equity preservation through tax deferment and long-term growth. After looking at some options available for non-accredited investors, I'm hoping to get your advice, opinions, and lessons learned for any of the other options currently available.

1. Hard Money Lending - this seems like a no-brainer win-win but I'm having trouble finding information on how this affects taxes. Is an LLC or other entity required? Are 1031s involved? Is it filed on schedule E with little to no deductions?How is this better than throwing it all in stock market ETFs and collecting 8+%? How do you get started?

2. Crowdfunding - I understand some of these are open to non-accredited investors, but I'm seeing a lot of mixed reviews.  Same as above, how are taxes involved, depreciation, etc.  I haven't dug into all of the requirements for making this a success, so any advice here is appreciated.

3. Private Syndications - My understanding is these are few and far between and you really need a strong network in order to land one of these deals.  Do you have advice or experience for one of these?  I would assume the same level of homework is involved versus other types of syndications.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer!