Stake: Real Estate Investing

Be very cautious with this app. Almost everything is labeled as “estimated” or “approximate,” which gives them room to underdeliver while still claiming results are “within expectations.” After nearly two years, returns have been disappointing. Another major issue is hidden costs. International bank-related fees were not clearly explained, and I ended up being charged extra by banks on top of the amount I invested. These costs add up and significantly impact your returns. The biggest red flag is liquidity. The so-called “exit window” doesn’t guarantee you can sell your shares—you’re dependent on their demand. Even at a loss, you may be stuck holding your investment, which makes it feel like your money is locked. Delays in rental income after properties are funded also raise serious concerns about how things are managed. It may look transparent and innovative on the surface, but in practice, it feels restrictive and one-sided. Do thorough research before investing so you don’t end up in the same situation.

Stake seems to have an edge as a gateway for real estate investing in the UAE. Having said this, it is unclear how do they get incentive to perform for investors and how they source their assets. When they buy an apartment, it is not clear if they are buying it at competitive prices as a third party valuation is not provided. Since there are no loans involved, there is also the lack of a second opinion from a bank prospective. Would a bank lend towards such a property at the price acquired? Therefore in summary: 1- How are the apartment sourced and do they get a 3rd party valuations before they buy there assets ? What are the comparables ? 2- There is an incentive to manage the assets and get paid from the rent. However, it is not clear what is the incentive for exit ? How does stake make their money when there is an exit ? Seems there is more incentive to keep and manage the assets vs providing an exit. 3- The spread between the gross and net is somewhat wide . It seems that the average expenses amount to 25% from the gross(it is fair to point out that this includes the common expenses at the property level fees) 4- It is also unclear who and how the disposal of a certain property takes place , how is the decision made and so on …. 5- They do not have track record of exits - very limited. For a company that has been around about 5 yrs + now, the lack of exists makes it hard to validate this platform 6- Conflict of interest: When they started they were sourcing asset from a related party. It is not clear if that is still the case and if they disclose that the asset was bought from a related party… Therefore, there are issues to be cleared before considering this platform for serious investors.

In the present era, the user experience you provide is extremely subpar. Businesses such as car rental agencies boast a swifter and more seamless onboarding process, especially in terms of image recognition. Despite a year having passed, I continually encounter advertisements from your side, yet the application's progress remains stagnant. At this point, I would have already returned to my client, promptly resolving the issue with an apology for the distress that was endured.