Real Estate Crowdfunding Minimum Investment: Every Platform Compared (2026)

There are two versions of the real estate crowdfunding pitch. The first: "invest in real estate with as little as $10." The second, in the fine print: "minimums for this specific offering start at $25,000, and you must be an accredited investor."

Both are true. They just describe completely different products on platforms that happen to share a name.

This article cuts through the marketing. I pulled minimums from every major real estate crowdfunding platform — 16 of them — and cross-referenced each with the platform's own help center or SEC filing. Where minimums vary by product (and they almost always do), every variation is listed. Where the marketing minimum differs from the realistic minimum, I say so.

If you've read our beginners guide to real estate crowdfunding or the fees comparison, this is the third leg of the stool: how much do you actually need to get started?

The Master Minimum Investment Table

This is the table you came for. Sorted low to high. Accredited-only platforms in bold.

Now let's break down what each of those numbers actually gets you — because a $10 Fundrise investment and a $10 Groundfloor LRO are very different animals.

The $10 Tier: True Entry-Level Platforms

Four platforms let you start with $10. Each buys you something different.

Fundrise — $10

Fundrise's $10 minimum is the most-cited number in real estate crowdfunding, and it's real. Open a brokerage account, deposit $10, and you own fractional shares of Fundrise's Flagship Real Estate Fund (or Income Fund, or Innovation Fund, depending on how you allocate).

The fine print:

• $10 minimum applies to taxable brokerage accounts only. IRAs require $1,000 minimum.
• $10 gets you the Flagship Real Estate Fund by default. Access to specific funds (Income, Innovation, Venture) requires Fundrise Pro at $10/month or $99/year.
• Investments over $125,000 must be made via wire (not ACH).
• Minimum for the Innovation Fund (VCX) is also $10, though historically it's been marketed as higher.

For a full breakdown of what you get for that $10, see our Fundrise review.

Groundfloor LROs — $10

Groundfloor's $10 minimum buys you a fractional share of a specific fix-and-flip loan. Unlike Fundrise (which pools your money across a fund), Groundfloor lets you pick individual loans to fund.

The fine print:

• $10 is per loan, not per account. You can have $10 spread across 50 loans ($500 total).
• Notes product is different. Groundfloor Notes (1/3/12-month fixed-term products) have a $1,000 minimum, not $10.
• Flywheel Portfolios (auto-diversified loan batches) have minimums that vary by offering.
• 100% of Groundfloor investors have received positive returns since 2018, per their 2025 Momentum Report. No defaults that weren't recovered.

Full breakdown in our Groundfloor review.

HappyNest — $10

HappyNest is a mobile-first REIT aimed at small investors. $10 gets you fractional shares of their commercial real estate REIT.

The fine print:

• Quarterly redemption only. You can't sell on demand.
• Smaller track record than Fundrise or Groundfloor.
• Dividends paid quarterly, not monthly.
• Limited to US residents.

Concreit — $1

The absolute lowest minimum in the industry. $1 buys you fractional shares of Concreit's pooled short-term real estate debt fund.

The fine print:

• $1 is for the pooled fund only. Fractional property shares start at $100.
• Target yield 6.5–7.5% (not guaranteed).
• Weekly liquidity on the pooled fund — better than most platforms in this tier.

The $20–$100 Tier: Fractional Ownership Platforms

This tier is where tokenized and "buy a specific property" platforms live.

Ark7 — $20 per share

Ark7 sells shares of specific single-family rentals at $20 each. Monthly dividends from rent; Ark7's July 2026 circular states there is no public trading market for the shares.

Lofty — $50 per token

Lofty tokenizes US rental properties on the Algorand blockchain. $50 buys one token, which earns daily rental distributions in USDC. See our full Lofty review for the regulatory and liquidity caveats.

The fine print (updated April 2026):

• Current secondary-market seller fee: 0.5% (down from 2.5%). Buyer fee 0% per current disclosures — verify before trading.
• 150+ properties tokenized across 40 markets; $99M+ TVL, 7,000 MAU.
• Algorand wallet required. If you're not crypto-comfortable, skip this.
• Regulatory structure is untested — Wyoming LLC + ASA retail marketplace has no SEC registration.

Arrived Homes — $100 per property

Arrived has been one of the most popular fractional rental platforms since 2022. $100 buys shares of a specific rental home or vacation rental.

The fine print:

• 3.5% sourcing fee baked in up front on individual rentals (5% on vacation rentals).
• No affiliate program — so reviews that push Arrived are doing it on merit, not commission. We earn nothing if you sign up through our Arrived review.
• $337M AUM, 945,000 registered investors, 93% occupancy as of February 2026.
• Individual rentals have 5–7 year target hold periods. Your money is locked up.

The $500–$5,000 Tier: REITs and Diversified Funds

This tier is where most "serious starter" platforms live.

DiversyFund — $500

Non-traded REIT focused on value-add multifamily. $500 minimum, no accreditation required.

The fine print:

• 5–7 year hold period. No liquidity until property sales.
• Limited track record compared to Fundrise or RealtyMogul.
• Mixed reviews — not a first-choice recommendation for most investors.

RealtyMogul Apartment Growth REIT — $1,000–$5,000

Multifamily equity REIT. Minimum depends on the specific version: some sources cite $1,000 for Apartment Growth REIT and $5,000 for the IRA version, though RealtyMogul's own product pages list $5,000 for most offerings.

The fine print:

• 1.25% annual management fee.
• Quarterly distributions averaging ~4.5% annualized.
• Up to 3% fee on share sales at exit.

RealtyMogul Income REIT — $5,000

Focused on income-producing commercial real estate. 109 consecutive months of monthly distributions as of early 2026.

The fine print:

• $5,000 minimum per RealtyMogul's own product page.
• 1% management fee + 0.5% loan servicing fee.
• 6–8% target annualized distribution rate.

HoneyBricks — $1,000 (status: dormant / acquired)

Critical 2026 update: HoneyBricks was acquired by EquityMultiple in April 2024 and is no longer accepting new investors. The honeybricks.com homepage redirects to EquityMultiple, and no new deals have been listed since 2023. See our full HoneyBricks review for the acquisition story and what it means for legacy token holders.

Historical facts:

• $1,000 min, accredited-only, Reg D 506(b)/506(c) feeder SPVs on Polygon blockchain.
• Tokenization, USDC distributions, and peer-to-peer secondary market have been shelved by the acquirer.
• No SEC filings since August 2023. If you're looking for tokenized CRE in 2026, see the Lofty review instead.

The Accredited-Only Tier: $5,000 and Up

Be careful with names in this tier. 1031 Crowdfunding is not crowdfunding in the usual sense at all: 15 of its 16 offerings carry a $25,000 minimum, every one is accredited-only, and the average investment across its 573 reported investors is $264,610.

These platforms require you to be an accredited investor: $200K+ annual income ($300K with spouse), $1M+ net worth excluding primary residence, or Series 7/65/82 license holder.

EquityMultiple — $5,000 floor, $10,000–$30,000 typical

EquityMultiple's marketing minimum is $5,000, but it's misleading. The typical deal runs $10,000–$30,000.

The fine print:

• $5,000 is the floor for a few specific offerings (usually funds).
• Direct deals typically require $10,000–$30,000.
• Additional shares in $5,000 increments.
• Accredited only.

For performance data and the full review, see our EquityMultiple review.

Yieldstreet Alternative Income Fund — $10,000

The successor to the old Prism Fund. Open to non-accredited investors as an SEC-registered closed-end interval fund, despite Yieldstreet's other offerings being accredited-only.

The fine print:

• $10,000 minimum initial subscription.
• $100 minimum for subsequent purchases.
• 1.0% annual management fee.
• Distributions quarterly.
• Important 2026 update: In March 2026, Mount Logan Capital announced it was acquiring the fund's assets and folding them into its Opportunistic Credit Interval Fund (SOFIX). Transaction expected to close Q2/Q3 2026. If you're starting from scratch, wait until the dust settles.
• See our PeerStreet collapse article for context on why platform shuffles matter.

Cadre — $25,000

Institutional-quality commercial real estate with an AI-driven deal selection framework. Accredited only.

CrowdStreet — typically $5,000

CrowdStreet's broker-dealer says in its Form CRS (May 18, 2026) that there is no account minimum and that offerings “typically have an investment minimum starting at $5,000; minimums vary by offering.” Since its 2025 relaunch the marketplace lists funds from outside managers (on October 10, 2026: Clarion, PGIM, T. Rowe Price OHA, Neuberger, Nuveen, Churchill and three StepStone funds) rather than the single-sponsor deals that used to start at $25,000. Our CrowdStreet review has the full record.

The fine print:

• $25,000 is the entry point; specific deals set their own higher minimums.
• Real estate funds and vehicles range $25,000–$100,000.
• Accredited only.
• Class-action lawsuit context: CrowdStreet's former CEO was accused of stealing $63M from investors in the Nightingale case. Due diligence on every deal is essential. We've covered this in our PeerStreet collapse article.

Why the Minimum Matters More Than You Think

You might be tempted to pick the lowest-minimum platform and call it a day. That's a mistake. The minimum is a signal of three things:

The right minimum for you isn't the lowest possible one. It's the one that matches your goals, your time, and your ability to evaluate deals.

How to Think About Your First Investment Size

Here's the framework I use when someone asks "what's the minimum I should start with?"

If you have less than $500

• Stick with one platform. $100 spread across five platforms gives you nothing except five email newsletters.
• Best pick: Fundrise or Groundfloor. Both have the longest track records under $100.
• Use it to learn, not to get rich. The goal is to understand how the platform works, how distributions come in, and how withdrawals feel.

If you have $500–$2,000

• Split across 2 platforms. See our how to invest in real estate with $500 guide for specific allocations.
• Consider one equity + one debt. Example: Fundrise (equity) + Groundfloor (debt).
• Add a REIT ETF (VNQ or SCHH) if you want liquid public real estate exposure. See our Fundrise vs REITs comparison.

If you have $2,000–$10,000

• You can hit 3–4 platforms meaningfully.
• Consider RealtyMogul Income REIT if $5,000 is available for a single allocation.
• Mix fund exposure with individual deal exposure (e.g., Fundrise Flagship + one Groundfloor LRO batch).

If you have $25,000+ and are accredited

• CrowdStreet and EquityMultiple become meaningful. A single $25,000 EquityMultiple deal gives you direct equity exposure you can't get at lower minimums.
• Diversify across at least 5 deals. One deal can go sideways. Five deals is a portfolio.
• Expect a 5–10 year time horizon. These are not liquid investments.

Minimum Investment Red Flags

Not every low minimum is a good deal, and not every high minimum guarantees quality.

Red flag #1: A "low minimum" that requires a paid subscription to access. Fundrise Pro ($99/year) unlocks direct fund access. Fine if you're investing $10,000+. A rip-off if you're testing with $100.

Red flag #2: A minimum that only applies to one specific offering. EquityMultiple's "$5,000 minimum" is a good example — real-world deals are $10,000–$30,000.

Red flag #3: Minimums that keep climbing. If a platform's minimum was $500 two years ago and is $2,000 today, they may be quietly exiting the retail market.

Red flag #4: A low minimum on a platform with a short track record. A $10 minimum on a 2-year-old platform isn't a bargain. It's a rounding error you might lose entirely. See our real estate crowdfunding risks article for platform failure patterns.

Red flag #5: The minimum is higher than the platform publicly advertises. If the landing page says "start with $100" but the signup flow asks for $1,000, walk away.

Minimum Investment by Investor Type

Quick reference for the four most common starter profiles:

Minimums Are Changing in 2026

Three trends to watch:

1. Minimums are climbing on established platforms. Fundrise Innovation Fund went public in March 2026. Over time, public listing may reduce the $10 minimum tier on Fundrise's private funds as they push investors toward the listed vehicle.

2. Tokenized real estate is compressing minimums downward. Platforms like Lofty and Ark7 are pushing the true minimum below $50. Expect more platforms to launch tokenized offerings through 2026 and 2027.

3. Accredited thresholds aren't moving, but platform minimums are. They move in both directions: Cadre and FNRP ask $25,000-$50,000, while CrowdStreet dropped its single-sponsor deals and now says its offerings typically start at $5,000 (Form CRS, May 2026). Check the current offering, not the platform's old reputation.

FAQ

The Bottom Line

The minimum investment on a real estate crowdfunding platform tells you who it's built for, not just how much it costs to start. A $10 minimum on Fundrise means the platform is optimized for retail investors buying fractional shares of a pool. A $25,000-$50,000 minimum on Cadre or FNRP means the platform is optimized for accredited investors buying individual commercial real estate deals.

Neither is better in the abstract. The right minimum is the one that matches what you're trying to buy.

If you're starting fresh with limited capital, Fundrise and Groundfloor are the cleanest entry points — both have 10+ year track records, transparent fees, and $10 effective minimums. If you're accredited and want direct equity exposure, EquityMultiple and CrowdStreet are where the meaningful offerings live — but expect $5,000-$25,000+ per position, and more to diversify properly.

Want a full platform-by-platform breakdown beyond minimums? Read our real estate crowdfunding fees comparison and real estate crowdfunding returns analysis.

Affiliate disclosure: We may earn a commission if you sign up for platforms through our links. We only recommend platforms we've independently researched. See our affiliate disclosure for details.