Online real estate management firm, HomeUnion, announced on Monday it has launched a crowdfunding platform that allows investors to purchase stakes in funds of single-family rental (SFR) properties on its website. The firm reported that starting with a minimum investment of $10,000, retail investors now have the ability to acquire interest in the HomeUnion Fix-and-Flip Fund. The fund enables consumers to invest in SFR assets acquired for fix-and-flip purposes in seven HomeUnion markets, which are Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Raleigh and Tampa. The company stated:
“The HomeUnion Fix-and-Flip Fund uses proprietary methodology and local market expertise to identify SFRs in seven active HomeUnion markets that present opportunities to increase values and command higher rents through renovation. The fund purchases, renovates, and places renters in these properties, which are located in Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Raleigh and Tampa. The properties in this fund are then sold as tenanted assets on HomeUnion’s online investment marketplace, where more than $150 million in real estate transactions have closed.”
While sharing details about the new funding platform, Don Ganguly, CEO of HomeUnion, shared:
“Consumers can now choose how they invest in real estate with us. With the launch of this new platform, we are empowering buyers to invest in rental assets directly, or invest in a fund that meets their individual preferences and goals,” he says. “Unlike other websites, which source third-party projects and act as middlemen or brokers, HomeUnion is the investment manager on the newly launched fund. In other words, we curate, renovate and manage the assets using big data and our local real estate experts.”
Ganguly added:
“The addition of crowdfunded investments to our site enhances our existing, robust platform, which allows individuals to acquire both single-family and multifamily real estate based on their personal preferences and goals. Investors can already select the metros and neighborhoods where they’d like to acquire properties (A, B, or C) and whether to use financing, all cash or a self-directed IRA for those acquisitions.”