What Is LEX Markets?
Founded by Drew Sterrett, Dean Sterrett, and Jesse Daugherty, LEX Markets is a commercial real estate marketplace headquartered in New York. LEX Markets was launched in 2017 as a way for accredited and non-accredited investors to gain exposure to the commercial real estate market safely and earn generous quarterly distributions in the process.
Through the LEX Markets marketplace, investors can see all the information about a particular investment, including valuation, a 52-week high, projections, and more. Compared to other real estate platforms, LEX Markets has a very low minimum – which depends on each offering – and usually ranges from $180-$250. As of 2022, LEX Markets has more than 20,000 active monthly investors.
In this quick LEX Markets summary, I will go over all the best features of this platform. If you want to read a more in-depth analysis, we recommend checking out our full LEX Markets review.
Pros & Cons of LEX Markets
Pros
- Open to accredited and non-accredited investors
- High liquidity in a secondary market
- Low minimum investment ($180-$250)
- Quarterly cash distributions
- Insured by the SIPC for up to $500,000
- Regulated by the SEC
- Very generous welcome bonus
Cons
- Doesn’t accept foreign investors
- Limited investment options
Invest in High-Quality Real Estate
LEX Markets lists a very select number of real estate properties with generous quarterly distributions and excellent long-term potential. From the LEX Markets website – after you create your account – you’ll be able to check all the relevant information about each opportunity. You can expect to find things like valuation and Loan-to-Value ratio and even expected price and historical performance.
The minimum investment and the expected returns vary depending on the property; the minimum investment is usually between $180-$250, while the returns are often between 10%-20%. LEX Markets is available to accredit and non-accredited investors in the US, but, like RealtyMogul and other real estate investing platforms, it doesn’t currently accept foreign investors.
High Liquidity in Secondary Markets
One of the main problems of real estate investing platforms is liquidity. LEX Markets solves this problem with a very thorough secondary market. With LEX Markets, you no longer have to lock up your money in an investment for five or more years or pay hefty early redemption fees.
Orders on the LEX Markets secondary market can be placed whenever the markets are open, and all LEX Markets assets can be sold as you would sell regular stocks in your portfolio – they even have their ticker symbol and can be held in brokerage accounts. This is a level of flexibility that platforms like First National Realty Partners can’t offer.
How Often Does LEX Markets Pay Cash Distributions?
Most properties listed in the LEX marketplace pay cash distributions quarterly, proportional to your stakes in a particular investment. Distributions are calculated individually by the owner of the property, and it’s usually correlated to the net cash flow of the property after paying fees such as servicing and expenses.
As a LEX Markets investor, you are protected; whenever the property owner pays cash distributions to any owner – including themselves – they are contractually required to pay distributions to LEX shareholders at an equal rate. LEX Markets ensures its investors receive their fair cash distributions. That’s why LEX Markets is one of our recommended real estate platforms – but not the only one. Before deciding, we recommend checking out our list of the best real estate crowdfunding platforms.
LEX Markets Insurance and Regulations
All LEX Markets investors are protected through the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) for up to $500,000 in securities and $250,000 in cash. LEX Markets investments are held by a registered broker-dealer, and you can further protect your account with biometrics.
LEX Markets is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and complies with all SEC regulations. LEX Markets uses AES 128-bit encryption and TLS protocols to maintain data integrity between your devices and the LEX Markets servers.
LEX Markets Fees
- Management Fee: 0.25% quarterly (1% annually)
- Trading Commissions: Free
The management fee is based on a trailing 90-day market value, and it is deducted directly from the quarterly dividend distributions. The management fee is the only fee you will ever pay when investing in LEX Markets.
Sign-Up Process
Signing up for LEX Markets is very easy, and it won’t take more than a couple of minutes before you can start browsing all the offerings. LEX Markets is available for accredited and non-accredited investors, but it doesn’t currently accept foreign investors. Only US citizens with a social security number can sign up for this platform. Here are the steps to sign up:
- Visit LEX Markets’s website
- On the top right, click Get Started
- Enter your email address
- Fill in some of your basic information
If you use our link to sign up, you will earn a welcome bonus when you reach a particular milestone. When you deposit your first $500, $5,000, and $10,000, you will earn a bonus of $50, $250, and $500, respectively, for a total of $800. This bonus is credited to your account immediately when you reach each milestone.
Final Thoughts
LEX Markets is a specialized real estate marketplace for investors seeking exposure to this exclusive asset class. LEX Markets is available for accredited and non-accredited US investors and has a very low minimum – that is well below the industry average – that varies depending on the property. With more than 20,000 active monthly investors, LEX Markets is quickly growing to become one of the preferred options for real estate investors.
