By Konrad Putzier | Real Estate Weekly
Real estate crowdfunding firms raised $1.014 billion worldwide in 2014, according to a report by research and consulting firm Massolution. Most of that money – $565 million – was raised in North America, more than doubling the 2013 total of $184 million.
The report highlights the impressive growth of real estate crowdfunding following its de-facto legalization in the U.S. in September 2013. In 2012, crowdfunding firms had raised a mere $19.1 million worldwide. U.S. crowdfunding platforms like Fundrise or Realty Mogul remain small players in real estate finance, but have been growing rapidly in recent months.
There are, however, questions over the accuracy of the report’s figures. They are mostly based on surveys among crowdfunding platforms, who may have an incentive to inflate their own performance.
