Roofstock Alternatives • Benzinga

Looking for an alternative to Roofstock for passive real estate investments? We’ve narrowed down the best Roofstock alternatives for you to consider. 

People have been using real estate to build wealth for thousands of years. Until recently, this asset class was reserved for individuals who already had a considerable amount of wealth — leaving the barriers to real estate investing high. 

Thanks to technology and loosened regulations, companies like Roofstock have been able to provide real estate investment opportunities to the everyday investor. 

Roofstock provides access to a wider range of property investments than typical investors can find on their own. The platform makes the process simple and eliminates the headaches that come with property management. 

While Roofstock is an excellent platform to invest in real estate, there are other options you may also want to consider. 

What is Roofstock?

Roofstock is a registered real estate broker and marketplace specializing in single-family rental properties. Unlike a typical real estate listing platform, each property on Roofstock is inspected by a qualified home inspector and carefully vetted to ensure each property meets specific criteria. 

Roofstock makes investing in real estate simple by simplifying the process of finding, buying and managing rental properties.

Advantages of Using Roofstock

Because Roofstock is a real estate investing platform, all of the important details an investor needs to know for each investment property are available on the listings. Photos, 3-D tours, floorplans, valuation reports, current lease details, local market data and more are all available on each listing. 

The entire offer and closing process is handled through the Roofstock platform to make the transaction as simple as possible for investors. The company even offers a rental income guarantee, so if you purchase a vacant home it will pay you rent for up to 45 days while you wait for a tenant to lease your Roofstock property. 

Roofstock also works with a network of qualified property managers to handle the day-to-day headaches that come with rental property investing, making your investment as passive as it can get. You can even use Roofstock to purchase a single-family rental property with your self-directed IRA.

If you’re interested in investing in individual residential rental properties, the Roofstock marketplace is likely a good option for you. You can also check out our Roofstock Review for more information on this real estate investment platform.

Why Invest in Real Estate?

Real estate has proven to be one of the greatest investment vehicles of all time. Real estate offers several advantages over many other types of investments including:

• Appreciation: While the real estate market does go through cycles, real estate has historically always increased in value over time. 
• Cash flow: In addition to appreciation, real estate provides investors with consistent cash flow through rental income.
• Tax advantages: Tax benefits, such as depreciation, interest expense write-offs and tax-deferred exchanges, allow investors to keep more of their profits.
• Security: Real estate is a tangible asset with a limited supply. 
• Leverage: Real estate can be leveraged with low interest rates, allowing investors to maximize their cash flow and build equity over time. 

Alternatives to Roofstock

There’s no question that Roofstock is an excellent option for investing in real estate, but it may not be the best choice for all investors. Purchasing your own rental property still requires a considerable amount of capital as a down payment and a property manager can rarely relieve all of the burdens that come with being an investment property owner. 

Below are some alternatives to Roofstock you may want to consider. 

Arrived Homes

Arrived Homes is a real estate investing platform that allows investors to purchase shares of individual rental properties. The company makes it possible to invest in rental properties for as little as $100. Arrived Homes also handles all property management responsibilities, making investments completely passive. 

Investors who don’t want to fork over the cash for a down payment on their own rental property can easily get started with real estate investing and grow their portfolios over time with small $100 investments. 

The average annual dividend paid to real estate investors on the Arrived Homes platform has ranged from 5.21% to 6.42% with an anticipated investment term of 5 to 7 years. Because this is one of the newer platforms on the market, the returns don’t yet account for appreciation or equity build. 

Groundfloor

Groundfloor is an alternative investment platform that allows investors to purchase shares of loans secured by residential properties.  

Groundfloor provides short-term hard money loans to real estate investors and homebuilders for the renovation or construction of residential properties. The company then places these loans on its platform where you can invest as little as $10 in whichever loans you choose. You can then earn passive income once the loans are repaid.

The average interest rate on these loans typically ranges from 6% to 12% with terms between 6 and 12 months. To date, the average actual return for investors is 10.5%.

CrowdStreet

CrowdStreet is a commercial real estate crowdfunding platform with a proven track record of providing institutional-grade real estate investments to individual investors. 

Experienced real estate investment and development firms submit deals to CrowdStreet, which conducts thorough due diligence to ensure that only the most viable investment opportunities are offered to its investors. In fact, only about 5% of the deals submitted pass CrowdStreet’s vetting process. 

All investment offerings on CrowdStreet are for commercial real estate, so it’s a great option for investors who want to participate in larger deals. Most deals on the platform have a minimum investment of $25,000 and are only available to accredited investors. 

Since 2014, the average annual return for investors on CrowdStreet is 17.1% with an average investment term of 2.3 years. 

Which Real Estate Investment Platform is Best for you?

Choosing the best real estate investment platform depends on your specific investment goals and the amount of capital you have available to invest. Each platform has its own unique benefits and risks, so we recommend carefully reviewing each option before making an investment decision. 

You also don’t have to choose just 1 investment platform. With the lower minimum investments required to invest in these crowdfunding platforms compared to purchasing your own individual properties, you can easily diversify across multiple investment platforms.

Benzinga’s Favorite REITs

Real estate investment trusts (REITs) offer another low-cost way to passively invest in real estate. You can view our list of best REITs to buy to see our favorite publicly-traded REITs, or check out these private REITs below that offer superior returns for long-term investors. 

The Bottom Line on Roofstock Alternatives

One thing is for certain, real estate is an excellent investment. It’s also available to more people than ever before through companies like Roofstock and the various real estate crowdfunding platforms available. With the number of options available today, there’s no reason not to take advantage of the many benefits real estate investing offers — even if you only have an extra $10 to invest. 

You can check out more articles on Benzinga for more information and resources on alternative real estate investments.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who are Roofstock’s competitors?

Aside from the Roofstock alternatives mentioned above, some of Roofstock’s competitors include:

• HappyInvestor
• MyHouseDeals
• Norada Real Estate Investments

What is the 2% rule in real estate?

The 2% rule is a method real estate investors use to find the best deals on investment properties. The idea is that you should only buy a property if the monthly rent is at least 2% of the purchase price.