Has anyone ever raised capital from Crowdfunding Platforms?

Question

A friend of mine just started working for this crowdfunding company that basically connects investors with real estate projects (income producing portfolio or development). I manage a syndication business and getting intrigue and kind of interested about exploring fund raising through these platforms.

I currently fund my portfolios with my capital, friends and family investors and referrals. Has anyone in BP ever raised capital from these platforms? Can you share you experience? Pros and cons? Any advice?

Adam Gower · Answer

Yes. The answer to your question largely depends on which platform you are considering.  There are only a handful worth looking at, and those that are are highly selective regarding the projects they list.  Biggest advantage of getting listed is sheer weight of numbers of accredited investors already on the platform actively looking for somewhere to invest.  Biggest disadvantage is that it's difficult to get listed.  Very.

Either way, if you want to raise capital online using crowdfunding you MUST have a strong online presence as it will enhance your capital formation efforts whether you are raising more money on your own or attempting to get listed on a platform.

And that, my dear fellow, would start with having a more comprehensive profile on BiggerPockets - including a link to your company website. :)

Adam Gower · Answer

Replying to @Bryan Hancock, yes indeed, there are folk who can help with finding investors independently - there are some details listed in my BiggerPockets profile for where you might like to start looking for that.

Bryan Hancock · Answer

The marketplaces for crowdfunding for real estate are highly selective for a reason.  They're catering to the investors on the site.  That's great if your deal type matches or if you already have the track record.  What happens if neither of these conditions apply?

Learn to market on your own and stand up your own site.  Learning to raise and organize money is one of the highest payoff activities in the industry and you can start other business interests once you learn to do so.  Outsourcing a core part of your business really isn't going to fit very well long-term for a sponsor.  Design the marketing systems you need and do it correctly on your own.  There are folks to help with this if you look around.

Todd Dexheimer · Answer

Yes, for me it did not help. I raised 100% of the money through my own network. I would consider it again on a much larger raise, but understand that your network will still have to bring the majority of the capital to the table.

Has anyone ever raised capital from Crowdfunding Platforms?

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