Comments on New websites crowdsource development ideas - Greater Greater Washington

Comment by Nilsson

Mon, 15 Oct 2012 09:01:25 EDT

It's Maketto, not Marketto.

Comment by vahoya

Fri, 12 Oct 2012 12:00:19 EDT

I'm all for new and different concepts, but the Fundrise idea is a recipe for disaster, overly idealistic and not scalable. It's gotten a ton of press from the lay-person community because of its community-based approach and seeming simplicity, but this will not work.

How heavy excessive are the fees to set up this investment model on such a small investment? How do you propose to deal with the myriad of pitfalls that can befell any risky investment? What's the means of recourse for the investor? How does this capital structure impair the ability of the investment or property owner from refinancing the property down the line? What's the exit strategy? Who has a say in business decisions? is there a board? There questions are just the tip of the iceberg.

There are a myriad of investment vehicles for real estate (REITs, LLCs/limited partnerships, fund models, etc.) that exist, are efficient and scalable. This model is a niche opportunity at best that raises a lot of questions and concerns to a savvy real estate investor.

Comment by Joseph

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 16:04:57 EDT

[This comment has been deleted for violating the comment policy.]

Comment by drumz

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 14:24:24 EDT

Sounds interesting. Though I wonder how much you get to say in how the business is controlled in the fund raising site. Maybe it says so clearly on the site that I missed but it looks like that it is unique to each investment opportunity which adds complexity but seems more secure than a boilerplate agreement. But I'm no expert by any means but I am wary about basically going into business with people I don't know and may never meet.

And of course, the best way to support small businesses is to shop at them more than you shop at other places.