Remy Jacobson, CEO of RealT – Interview Series

Remy Jacobson recently launched a crowdfunding platform called RealT that allows cryptocurrency investors to invest in real estate assets, starting with rental homes in Detroit, Michigan. The company is expanding next to Cleveland, New Orleans and South Florida.

In South Florida, Jacobson heads the Aventura-based development firm J Cube Development. In November, he sold a development site in Wynwood to Quadrum Global for $8.55 million.

Antoine:  RealT plans on tokenizing real estate in the city of Detroit, Michigan. Why did you choose Detroit versus competing cities with stronger real estate markets?

Remy: Detroit is the optimal place for RealT to get started. Properties in Detroit are already in high demand among international investors, due to their low price tags and high rental rates. As RealToken owners, the rental income is the tangible source of gratification they receive. Having low-cost properties with high rental rates is a great way to provide value for our early adopters.

Antoine:  Will you be focusing on capital gains or rental yields?

Remy: We will be looking at both areas. Rental yields will be paid to the investor via their Ethereum wallet on an ongoing basis and, as the value of the property and rent price increase, so will their rental income. Investors also have the option of selling on their tokens, after due diligence has been carried out,  to yield capital gains too.

Antoine:  What will be the average holding period?

Remy: RealTokens sold overseas will be freely transferable overseas to non-U.S. persons who have qualified following AML/KYC reviews, but, in order to comply with U.S. applicable securities laws,  these ReatTokens may not flow back into the United States for a period of 12 months. RealTokens that are sold to accredited investors in the U.S. may be transferred to other whitelisted accredited investors after 90 days and will become freely transferable to anyone after 12 months.

As a practical matter, it is too early to tell how long purchasers will want to hold their RealTokens.

Antoine:  What made you decide on the tokenization model?

Remy: We wanted to make investing in US property more accessible, notably to foreign investors. By tokenizing property, we can offer investments at accessible prices to a greater number of people. It’s also important that blockchain is the technology that backs tokenization because this ensures the efficiency and traceability of real estate investment that the traditional real estate sector is clearly lacking. Our tokenization model offers the advantage of a regular real estate transaction on top of blockchain transparency. RealT is a bridge between the physical and the digital world: all deeds, operations agreements, and other legal documents are viewable on the blockchain, while at the same time held in trust with a law firm.

Antoine:  How are you planning on attracting retail investors who may not be familiar with security tokens or cryptocurrency in general?

Remy: RealT has lowered the barrier of entry to real estate, to an accessible and affordable amount. RealT can provide an integral part of a modern investor’s portfolio, and now it can be held inside on Ethereum’s wallet. We aim to be the Coinbase of real estate assets. One of our main aims is to make the concept and process of investing in property as straightforward as possible. It’s important to us that people who would have otherwise never considered investing in property through blockchain understand that they don’t have to be bogged down in bureaucracy and jargon to participate. Our marketplace and buying process is intuitive and runs buyers through digestible steps before purchasing tokens.

Antoine:  Can you share with us the benefits that investors will be offered?

Remy: Investors can enjoy passive rental income that will be paid continually into their Ethereum wallet once they have invested in a property. This income will be paid in stable coins which are pegged to the US dollar so that investors don’t have to concern themselves with the volatility of a particular cryptocurrency at any given point. As token owners, investors can also contribute to the significant decisions required concerning the upkeep and maintenance of the property in which they’ve invested. This is done through a simple voting process.

Antoine:  Will investors be able to select the investment they wish to be involved in? Or will the security token act as a fund which holds multiple properties?

Remy: With RealT, you can select specific properties and become an owner in the property. As an investor, you get to own the actual real estate. RealTokens are important building blocks in the Ethereum ecosystem. By going all the way down to the foundation of real estate, to the individual properties themselves, RealT enables anyone to create a real estate portfolio using RealTokens. It’s an important distinction; the real estate funds of the future may very well have RealTokens as the asset. This is why RealT investors have full visibility on our marketplace and can choose the exact property they wish to invest in and how many tokens they want to purchase for that property. The rent they then yield will come directly from the property that they’ve invested in.

Antoine: Is this offering exclusive to US accredited investors? Will you be accepting international investors?

Remy: The offering is primarily targeted at international investors. Traditionally, the US real estate market has been relatively inaccessible to those residing outside of the US. We want to change this and open up the possibility for anyone in the world to invest in US real estate and benefit from passive rental income. We, of course, accept accredited investors.

The offering is being made in the U.S. only to accredited investors pursuant to Regulation D under the Securities Act of 1933, and overseas to non-U.S. persons pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act.

Antoine: How are you planning on differentiating yourself from competitors such as BlockEstate, Realecoin, Slice RE, etc.

Remy: The main differentiator is that RealT is up and live. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first platform to officially launch and offer the prospect of buying into tokenized property. Additionally, RealT is tokenizing properties themselves, rather than offering an investment fund that specializes in real estate. This returns autonomy to the individual, and allows them to choose the properties they want, at the investment size they chose. We have a very strong team behind RealT, with both blockchain and cryptocurrency expertise as well as extensive real estate knowledge. Many projects in the area of tokenized real estate are either run by crypto enthusiasts or real estate professionals, but at RealT we combine these areas of expertise to offer a comprehensive, fully-compliant service.

Antoine: Is there anything else that you would like to share with us about RealT?

Remy: RealT will continue to add new property types, from various cities, to continue to sample what our customers want to see available for purchase. RealT has plans to tokenize properties in all major U.S. cities, and we look forward to seeing which cities generate the most demand. And creating liquidity.

To learn more visit the RealT website.