Guides · Real estate capital raising and syndication

How to Run a Real Estate Syndication Raise

Most real estate raises stall for the same reason. The sponsor talks about the market and forgets to talk about the deal. The investors I hear from at Family Office Club want to see one clear opportunity they can judge on its own.

This guide walks through how to run a syndication raise using what I have heard from investors and operators on our panels. Many sponsors talk with a securities attorney about the legal side before they speak to investors.

The steps

Step 1. Lead with one deal

Start with a single deal you can explain in a few minutes. One investor we interviewed quoted Sam Zell, who said people always ask what markets he is buying, and he replies that he does not have a market, he buys a deal. That is the right frame for your raise. Pick the asset, know the numbers, and be ready to say why it stands out from everything else the investor has seen. Investors often see many deals, so yours should stand out for the right reasons.

Step 2. Know who invests in real estate

Before you build a target list, know the numbers. At our events, about 75% of family offices invest in real estate. On average it makes up about 25% of their portfolio. That means roughly 75% sits in other asset classes. So when you speak to a so-called real estate investor, ask whether they invest outside real estate too. Many have secondary funds or venture funds. Knowing this helps you set realistic check sizes and understand how your deal fits next to everything else they own.

Step 3. Match your strategy to the investor

Investors sort real estate into strategies, and you should know where yours sits. One investor we interviewed lists four. Development projects, which he calls growth and opportunistic. Distressed equity. US multifamily syndications. And luxury rehab or renovation in prime locations. He also said he usually allocates to single syndication deals instead of pools of capital or funds. That tells you something. Some investors want to back one asset directly. Say clearly which strategy you run, and speak to people who already buy that kind of deal.

Step 4. Be honest about a hot market

If you raise for multifamily, expect pushback on pricing. The same investor told me that multifamily syndication is a little bit hot, with a lot of capital chasing too few good assets. Do not argue with that. Address it directly. Show how you found your asset, what you are paying, and why it still works. Investors respect a sponsor who admits the market is crowded and then proves the specific deal holds up. Vague optimism about the whole sector will not help you.

Step 5. Move fast on discounted deals

Some opportunities come with a deadline. The investor I mentioned said distressed equity is not available all the time, but a downturn can create openings. He said the work is in finding them and doing quick due diligence, because a big discount can disappear fast. If your deal has that shape, have your diligence package ready before you start calling investors. Know your numbers, your documents, and your timeline. A slow answer to a basic question can cost you the deal.

Step 6. Show the risk and the reward

The same investor said great deals tend to have a fantastic risk to reward profile. He also said that even as a growth investor, he does not shoot around like a cowboy chasing the biggest upside. Build your presentation around that balance. Lay out what could go wrong, what you will do about it, and what the upside looks like if things go well. Investors are putting hard earned wealth at risk. They want to see that you have thought about the downside as carefully as the gain.

Step 7. Prove your track record with specifics

Numbers build trust. On one panel, Bill described his firm's history. Over 30 years they have acquired, owned, operated or developed over 170 hotels. They typically do 8 to 12 hotel acquisition deals a year. This year his team deployed about $75 million of equity into hotel acquisitions. They partner with family offices and ultra high net worth individuals in joint venture structures. Write your own version of this. Use real counts, real dollar amounts, and real partners. Many sponsors also talk with a securities attorney about how to present a track record and how to structure a raise.

From my talks

From my book

One thing I tell sponsors is to look at how a family builds its real estate sleeve before pitching it. Most of the families I work with split it roughly 80% cash flowing real estate and 20% development. They usually pick four to seven different real estate food groups, and they spread money across 7 to 12 funds, providers and sponsors. So your syndication is rarely the whole bet. It is one slot in a diversified mix, and you should say which slot you fill.

What trips people up

• Pitching a market or a theme when investors want one specific deal they can judge.
• Assuming a real estate investor only buys real estate when most family offices hold the majority of their portfolio elsewhere.
• Ignoring that multifamily is crowded instead of showing why your asset still works.
• Showing only the upside and skipping the risk, so investors think you have not looked at the downside.
• Sending out offering materials without first talking to a securities attorney about the structure and how you describe your track record.

Facts from this talk

• About 75% of the family offices in our network invest in real estate, and it makes up about 25% of their portfolio on average.
• One hotel operator on our panel typically does 8 to 12 hotel acquisition deals a year and deployed about $75 million of equity into hotel acquisitions in a single year.
• One investor described US multifamily syndications as a little bit hot, with a lot of capital chasing too few good assets.

General education only. Not legal, tax or investment advice.

Talk to a securities attorney to explore options around offering documents, raise structure and track record disclosures. Do not use AI to write your own legal agreements.

Questions about this guide

Related questions

• How do I structure a real estate syndication for investors?Start with a clear split between sponsor and investors.
• How do I raise capital for a hotel purchase?Many hotel buyers fund the equity through joint ventures with family offices and wealthy individuals, then add debt on top.
• How do I raise capital for a mobile home park?Raise capital for a mobile home park by teaching investors why the asset class works before you ask anyone for money.
• What is the typical GP LP split in multifamily syndication?There is no single standard, but a common pattern is a preferred return to the investor first, often around 8%, then a split of the back end profit.

Use the investor meeting follow-up checklist alongside this guide.