Reviews

The platforms, checked against their own terms

What each platform sells, what it costs once every fee is counted, what it has actually returned against what it claimed, and who should skip it. We take no referral fees and say so on every page.

• IRA Custodians

  Alto IRA Review: Alternatives in a Retirement Account, Fees and Partner Risk

  A flat-fee self-directed IRA wired into a dozen alternative platforms, with a forced crypto liquidation on its record.

  3 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  Ark7 Review: $20 Rental Shares, PPEX Trading and a 4% Yield

  Twenty-dollar shares in named rental houses, a real ATS exit, and dividends running at 4.00% in August 2026.

  3.5 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Private Credit

  BCRED Review: 8.9% Yield, the June Gate and What Retail Investors Signed Up For

  A $42.8B non-traded BDC yielding about 9% that rationed withdrawals at 5% in two consecutive quarters.

  2.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  BREIT Review: Fees, the 2022-24 Gate and Whether the Recovery Is Real

  BREIT charges 1.25% a year plus 12.5% of profit and prorated every exit for fifteen months.

  3 / 5·43 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Collector Cars

  Bring a Trailer Review: Fees, Results and Whether It Still Beats Cars & Bids

  The largest collector-car auction venue in the US: $1.713B sold in 2025, 5% buyer fee.

  4 / 5·43 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Luxury Goods

  Chrono24 Review: Escrow, Fake Sellers and Where It Beats Bezel

  The largest pre-owned watch marketplace: 6.5% for private sellers, escrow on every deal, authentication left to the seller.

  3.5 / 5·45 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Crypto

  Coinbase Review: Fees, Custody Risk and Whether Coinbase One Pays Off

  The default US crypto on-ramp, priced at a premium on the screen most beginners use.

  3.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Sports Cards & Trading Cards

  Collector Crypt Review: Tokenized Pokémon Cards, Packs and Platform Risk

  A Solana vault and marketplace whose revenue comes almost entirely from randomized card packs.

  2 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  CrowdStreet Review: After the $63M Nightingale Fraud, Is It Safe?

  Investors lost $62.8M to a sponsor CrowdStreet vetted; its own realised record is 11.2% IRR.

  2.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Pre-IPO Shares

  DXYZ Review: Paying a Premium for SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic

  A listed closed-end fund holding SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI, priced by sentiment rather than by NAV.

  2.5 / 5·45 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  EquityMultiple Review: Alpine Notes, Deal Returns and Investor-Paid Fees

  Larson, a sponsor on the platform, has operated it since August 1, 2026; realised IRR 12.10%.

  2.5 / 5·40 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Crypto

  IBIT Review: Is BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF the Best Way to Hold BTC?

  BlackRock's spot bitcoin ETF charges 0.25% a year and keeps almost all of its coins at Coinbase.

  4 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• IRA Custodians

  iTrustCapital Review: Crypto and Gold IRA With No Monthly Fee

  A crypto and metals IRA with no annual fee, priced at 1% a trade and 22% of staking.

  4 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Crypto

  Kraken Review: Pro Fees, Instant-Buy Spreads and US Compliance

  Kraken doubled its entry Pro fee on July 9, 2026; the cheap tier starts at $20,000 held.

  3.5 / 5·43 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Crypto

  Ledger Review: Nano Gen5, Flex, Stax and the Data-Breach Record

  The best-selling hardware wallet, made by a company that has leaked its customers' home addresses twice.

  3.5 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  Lofty Review: $50 Tokenized Rentals, Daily Rent and the Withdrawal Complaints

  Rental houses split into $50 Algorand tokens, paying rent daily, with no SEC-registered offering behind them.

  2.5 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  RealtyMogul Review: Income REIT Freeze, NAV Cuts and What's Left

  Both REITs froze redemptions on April 21, 2026; Income REIT NAV is $6.79, down 38% since 2022.

  2 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Pre-IPO Shares

  Republic Review: Startup Crowdfunding, the Republic Note and Falling Deal Flow

  Clean regulatory record, capped investor fee, shrinking deal flow, and a token that has never paid.

  2.5 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Pre-IPO Shares

  Robinhood Ventures Fund Review: RVI, RVII and Private Tech in Any Brokerage

  Exchange-listed private tech at $25 a share: 3.13% a year, a quarterly NAV, a round-tripped premium.

  3 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Royalties

  Royalty Exchange Review: Buying Music Royalties at Auction

  Whole music royalty lots at auction, a 6.7x median multiple on AltStreet's tabulation, diligence left to you.

  3.5 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Luxury Goods

  StockX Review: Fees, the Nike Counterfeit Ruling and Whether GOAT Is Safer

  Bid-and-ask marketplace for sneakers and cards: a 12% seller fee stack and a 2025 counterfeit ruling.

  3.5 / 5·43 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Luxury Goods

  The RealReal Review: Consignment Fees, Authentication and Birkin Payouts

  The largest US luxury consignment marketplace kept about 38% of consignment sale proceeds in 2025.

  3 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Pre-IPO Shares

  Wefunder Review: The Biggest Reg CF Platform and What Investors Actually Get

  The largest Reg CF portal, $109M closed in 2025, with a 2% entry fee and no exit.

  3 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Real Estate

  What Happened to Landa: The $5 Real Estate App That Went Dark

  Landa sold $5 shares in rental houses, stopped paying in January 2025 and lost 119 homes to receivership.

  1 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Pre-IPO Shares

  What Happened to Linqto: Bankruptcy, Recovery Plan and Lessons for Pre-IPO Investors

  A no-fee pre-IPO app whose only charge was an undisclosed markup, median about 60% on the DOJ's allegation.

  1 / 5·41 min read·Updated 2026-09-18

• Farmland

  AcreTrader Review: Farmland Deals, 0.75% Fees and the Liquidity Trade-off

  AcreTrader sells accredited investors single-farm LLCs at 0.75% a year, with no secondary market and 5–10 year holds.

  3.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Precious Metals

  APMEX Review: Premiums, Buybacks and Where It Beats JM Bullion

  The largest US online bullion dealer, owned by a Swiss refiner, priced above its discount rivals.

  3.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Real Estate

  Arrived Review: Rental-Home Shares, Real Yields and the Fee Math

  Named rental houses at $100 a stake, paying 3.5% to 3.9% net in 2025 and 2026.

  3 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Precious Metals

  Augusta Precious Metals Review: $50k Minimum, Flat Fees and the Gold IRA Pitch

  A $50,000 door, a disclosed margin ceiling of 66% or higher, and no published price list.

  3 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Pre-IPO Shares

  EquityZen Review: Morgan Stanley Ownership, 2.5% Fees and Pre-IPO Access

  Morgan Stanley's pre-IPO marketplace: $5,000 minimums, 2.5% a side, and a company veto that can kill the deal.

  3.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Pre-IPO Shares

  Forge Global Review: Pre-IPO Access at $100k and What It Really Costs

  Schwab-owned broker for late-stage private shares: $100,000 minimum, 2–5% commissions, indicative prices only.

  3 / 5·43 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Real Estate

  Fundrise Review: Returns, Redemption Freezes and the 1% Fee

  Fundrise charges 1% a year, froze its legacy eREITs for seven months and listed its venture fund.

  3 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Precious Metals

  Goldco Review: Rollover Fees, Markups and the $2M TCPA Settlement

  The most-advertised gold IRA dealer in America, priced on a phone call and paid in the spread.

  2.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Private Credit

  Groundfloor Review: 10% Yields, Default Reality and the Notes Alternative

  Fee-free $10 slices of fix-and-flip loans: about 10% when they repay, years of waiting when they do not.

  3 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Pre-IPO Shares

  Hiive Review: Live Order Book, $25k Minimum and Pre-IPO Price Discovery

  A live bid and ask book on 3,000+ private companies, a $25,000 minimum, seller-paid commissions.

  4 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Fine Art

  Masterworks Review: Fees, Returns and the Fine Print

  Single-painting shares at $20 each, behind a fee stack the circulars price at 11% on day one.

  2.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Private Credit

  Percent Review: 17% Coupons, 3.7% Defaults and the 10% Interest Haircut

  Short-dated private credit notes from $500: a 16.95% headline coupon that nets 10.5% after losses and fees.

  3.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Multi-Asset Platforms

  Rally Review: Fractional Collectibles, Real Exit Data and Going-Concern Risk

  Fractional collectibles from $50, a 6.8% median realised IRR on 111 exits, and a going-concern note.

  2.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Fine Wine

  Vinovest Review: Wine, Whiskey Casks and the Exit Problem

  Managed wine and whiskey at 2.25 to 2.85% a year, from a platform whose customers struggle to exit.

  2 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17

• Multi-Asset Platforms

  Willow Wealth (Yieldstreet) Review: What the Rebrand Doesn't Fix

  Yieldstreet renamed itself after $208M of documented losses; the fee stack and structure did not change.

  1.5 / 5·44 min read·Updated 2026-09-17