Crowdfunding is a real estate investment approach I want to share with you in this article. Chances are, you’re looking for smart ways to diversify your portfolio and stay true to your asset allocation. As for me, I’ve always dreamed of owning my own home and earning money through rental property. It’s a tangible asset class that generates passive income and tends to hold up better against inflation than many other investments.
Today, I own my own home – but I’ve completely changed my views on rental property investment in France.
For political and economic reasons I won’t get into here, you can certainly still make money in real estate, but the most attractive opportunities have become far more nuanced.
Real estate used to be reserved for the wealthy, but fortunately, it has become massively more accessible. For me, it remains first and foremost a strategy to diversify my wealth and generate steady returns.
In France, real estate accounts for roughly 20% of GDP, and investors have long seen it as a safe haven against inflation. That’s where the different real estate investment options come in.
Let me walk you through them, before I reveal my personal favorite: crowdfunding via the BRICKS app – and that standout château project backed by Tony Parker.
The Various Real Estate Investment Solutions: From Traditional Bricks to Digital
Direct Investment: Buying and Managing Yourself
Apart from your primary residence – and even that’s debatable – I wouldn’t advise jumping into direct real estate investment unless you have a strong financial footing, a comfortable cushion in the bank, and some industry contacts. Alternatively, you could look at rental properties in countries that are more favorable to this type of asset class..
SCPIs and OPCIs: « Corporate » Real Estate
I have a very negative view of commercial SCPIs: share values plummeted in the 2020s, and the fees are staggering. Why? The commission model is fundamentally broken – salespeople are rewarded for volume, not for product quality. It’s a poor and unreliable system. On top of that, these oversized institutions are slow to adapt to changing market dynamics and are highly illiquid (with the possible exception of holding them within a life insurance wrapper). So, I simply don’t recommend this type of investment.
REITs (SIICs): Real Estate Listed on the Stock Market
REITs (or SIICs in France) are publicly traded companies that own and manage real estate assets – think shopping malls, office buildings, hotels. You buy shares just like you would any stock. I actually hold some myself, but they’re not the focus of this article.
On the plus side: you can get started with as little as €50-100, enjoy regular dividends (typically 4-6% gross), benefit from instant liquidity (you can sell them on the exchange anytime), and access global diversification.
On the downside: they’re subject to stock market volatility, dividends are taxed at the 30% flat tax, and you’ll pay brokerage fees (around 0.1-1%).
A good example: Realty Income in the US – a globally diversified real estate player offering a yield of roughly 5%.
Risk level: Moderate – they’re sensitive to market swings and interest rate movements.
Real Estate Crowdfunding: The Digital Revolution
And this is where my story truly begins! Real estate crowdfunding first appeared in France in 2014, and by 2024 it had raised a staggering €1.2 billion. Through AMF-approved platforms like BRICKS, you can invest from just €100 to €1,000 in tangible projects – whether it’s new builds, renovations, or buy-to-sell flips.
The upside: attractive returns (8-12% gross, 5-8% net after the 30% flat tax), short investment horizons (12-24 months), and a real tangible impact – like helping to finance a château!
The downside: there’s a risk of loss (around 1-2% default rate), your money is locked in for a set period, and the flat tax takes its cut.
For example: you could lend €1,000 to a residential development in Bordeaux and get it back with 10% interest after 18 months.
Risk level: moderate – but you can mitigate it by spreading your investments across 5 to 10 different projects.
What won me over? BRICKS and its intuitive app…itive et ses projets premium, comme celui du château de Tony Parker.
Ma première exérience de financement participatif
Bricks.co: financement participatif à partie de 10 €
Bricks Co had a bit of a rocky start. But over time, I’ve come to see the start-up’s evolution as positive – not just in terms of the website, but also in management, upcoming regulatory approvals, the quality of the crowdfunding projects they list, and the credibility and trust that ambassador Tony Parker brings to the company. That said, investing always carries risks, so I evaluate the risk/reward ratio of each project individually – on its own merits – without relying on the platform’s reputation or the countless opinions floating around online about crowdfunding.
Tony Parker
Tony Parker hung up his sneakers in 2019, but he’s far from idle. He stays busy with investments across a range of sectors: he chairs a basketball club in Lyon, runs an academy there, and has set up a sports-study campus, among other ventures. Away from basketball, he’s been involved in media projects, advertising campaigns, and even launched his own clothing brand.
In 2019, following some solid advice, he turned to real estate to diversify and balance his portfolio. He acquired the company running the ski lifts at the Villard-de-Lans Corrençon-en-Vercors resort. In 2020, he ventured into horse racing, founding the Infinity Nine Horses stable and, with a partner, buying the Haras de Quetiéville stud farm in Normandy. Most recently, he’s invested in the Château Saint-Laurent estate in Morrières-les-Avignon. Like any shrewd investor, he pools all his holdings under a single umbrella: Infinity Nine Group.
Château Saint Laurent
Château Saint-Laurent is one of the crowdfunding projects I’ve personally invested in through bonds. The aim is to give the château a new lease on life, with ambitious plans in place: transitioning the estate’s vineyards to agroecology, elevating the quality of its wine offerings, and expanding both production and international sales.
Tony Parker’s Words :
This château represents much more than a real estate investment – it’s a part of my story that I want to share. Combining my passion for wine with my love for sports, while offering the chance to experience exclusive moments, is my way of thanking my fans and opening the doors to a world that matters deeply to me.
Tony Parker Crowdfunding Event – May 2024
Out of the 3,448 Brickers, a lucky draw selected 250 individual investors linked to the project to attend an exclusive event hosted by Tony Parker at the château on May 30, 2024. I was there, alongside people who had traveled from every corner of France – and even from overseas territories like Guadeloupe.
We listened to speeches from Cédric O’Neill and Tony Parker, followed by a Q&A session with Tony himself and other key people involved, such as co-owner Saïd El Yousfi and the château’s manager. After that, we got to taste the estate’s first vintage, enjoy some drinks, and take a tour of two guest rooms that were still under construction. Tony Parker stuck around for about two hours and graciously posed for photos before heading off.
The Advantages of the Referral Program
Here are the Premium referral benefits on BRICKS.CO for 2024:
The 2024 referral program on BRICKS.CO offers a 1% cashback bonus on all amounts invested by the referred person during their first three months on the platform.
The referral bonus is calculated as 1% of the amount invested by the person you refer, and both the referrer and the new investor receive this bonus. There is a limit of €1,500 per year per person for these referral bonuses.
The bonus is paid directly into your BRICKS wallet approximately one month after the project’s notarial deed is signed, when the funds are officially transferred to the project owner. The bonus must be claimed by entering the referral code during registration, and if you forget to do so, you have up to three months to add it by contacting customer support
My referral code on Bricks.co is: YANLEF46
Here is the link: https://app.bricks.co/sign-up/YANLEF46
