BulkEstate review : interesting real-estate crowdfunding opportunities

BulkEstate’s overview

BulkEstate features only real-estate projects. Interest rates typically vary from 14% to 17% (recent projects were more speculative than early ones); interests are usually repaid in full at the end of the loan, at the same time as the capital.

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My opinion on BulkEstate

Detailed ratings

Loans characteristics

Real-estate loans

Interest rates are usually between 14% and 17% for a duration of one year or less. There are usually only a few investment opportunities at the same time, with a large amount to invest in. It’s more or less the same situation as with Grupeer‘s loans; you don’t have to check BulkEstate‘s website everyday !

One important difference with P2P lending sites is that both principal and accrued interests are repaid at the loan repayment date; there’s no monthly interest repayment. The minimum investment is 50€, which is higher than for personal loans for example but rather common in real-estate financing.

The website provides a basic description provided for each project; compared to CrowdEstate, BulkEstate could provide further details. The SWOT (Strengths/Weaknesses/Threat/Opportunities) matrix, repayment schedule, company rating and risk profile comparison found at CrowdEstate would be welcome additions !

Buyback guarantee

The loans are not guaranteed. However, the value of the properties the loan is invested in helps mitigate the risks.

Platform’s features

Secondary market

There’s currently no secondary market. BulkEstate is supposedly working on it, but didn’t provide any timeline.

Auto-invest feature

Opportunity to use auto-invest was added in April 2018. It’s really easy to configure it; the required inputs are maximum investment amount, minimum return and maximum term. Note that thanks to the small number of available projects, it’s still very easy to invest manually; however, using auto-invest may be useful in order to be sure you’ll get a share of high-yielding projects.

Website’s ease of use

Funding methods

Account funding

Initially, investors didn’t have the opportunity to fund their BulkEstate account; money had to be wired at time of investment. This could cause troubles if the transfer took too long, and was overall bothersome. Fortunately, an upgrade introduced the opportunity to send funds ahead of time, like most competitors allow.

However, one slightly annoying aspect remains. Before transferring money, it’s mandatory to generate an invoice on BulkEstate’s website, by inputting the transferred amount ahead of time. This is slightly inconvenient, and apart from Crowdestor, no other platform requires it.

Website’s design and ergonomics

I was initially not very satisfied with the usability of BulkEstate‘s website. However, things have improved and it’s much more pleasant to use now. The translations have also improved, although they’re still not perfect.

Reporting​

The investments list is rather basic, providing very little details; however, it has improved as BulkEstate added new features. For example, it’s now possible to view the payment schedule, although it actually has to be downloaded as a PDF file.

On the other hand, the low number of loans and basic repayment structure partially compensate this lack of details.

Documentation

While the How investing works document isn’t detailed enough, the very extensive FAQ provides many details regarding the investing process; most investors are likely to find answers to their questions there.

Support​

There’s no live chat available. I got in touch with BulkEstate by e-mail regarding account statements for tax purposes. They answered quickly and were very helpful : in a few hours, I received the statement by e-mail.

Communication from the platform​

BulkEstate won’t clutter your inbox with countless emails ! Indeed, you will only receive notification when a new investment is made through the auto-invest feature, when a project is fully funded, and in order to announce new projects.

Actual performance of my BulkEstate portfolio

BulkEstate’s main competitors

BulkEstate’s facts and figures

Who can invest

Any company or any person over the age of 18 can invest in any of the active investment opportunities on the BulkEstate platform.

Disclosure

Please note that this review may contain affiliate links. It means that I will earn a commission if you decide to invest after clicking through the link – at no additional cost to you, of course -. Please understand that I have experienced all of these companies, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the commissions I make if you decide to invest through my links.