Women are often the financial decision-makers in a household, but they’re well under-represented in the property and finance industry. Avestix Equity Pty Ltd is keen to change that, becoming the first company in Australia to integrate crowdsourcing with property investment – and the leadership team is all-female.
Their new investment platform was created in an effort to attract prospective investors from different demographics and open up a range of opportunities to everyday Australians, explains Avestix Equity CEO Susan Lindeque.
“I am always looking at innovative ideas around finance and capitalism, and I realised that equity crowdfunding provided a way for people who would never be able to own their own home to enter the property market with low risk while giving them a long-term investment,” she says.
For a minimal investment starting at $500, people from all walks of life can become part-owners of properties purchased by the company with the aid of a crowd-sourced fund.
These properties are carefully selected for their growth and cashflow potential, offering greater assurance that investors could see profit on a regular basis. This model is a way of easing young people into the whys and hows of property investment, without prompting them to stake their financial stability on the success of a single property or portfolio.
“When I was in my 20s, there was nowhere like this to invest. Even millennials can put in just $500 and in the long term, it could really help them get ahead,” explains Chief Marketing Officer Debra Barber.
More than just a platform for low-risk property investment, however, this unique investment strategy has become the avenue through which women can carve out a place in the largely male-dominated industry. Lindeque and Barber are helping to spearhead a trend of greater inclusion for women in property by serving as two of the members of Avestix Equity’s all-female board of directors, alongside CFO Kaelene McElligott.
“I wanted to create something with a more female touch and try to stop the stereotype that it’s just another male dominated project in the finance or construction industry,” Lindeque says.
These three superwomen from Brisbane are also out to prove that while being a working mother isn’t easy, it doesn’t stop one from succeeding – an important message in today’s climate.
“For me, it’s very hard to find that balance because I’m such a workaholic, but it’s because I absolutely love what I’m doing. We want to continue building Avestix Equity into a large landlord investment company that will provide long term returns for its shareholders,” Lindeque admits.
“More importantly, to provide jobs and affordable rent for everyday Australians will be fulfilling. If I need to stay up until one o’clock in the morning to get stuff done, that’s when I’m doing it.”
While Lindeque, Barber and McElligott did not intentionally set out to put together an all-female board, the end result showed that women most certainly had the skill and talent to make an impact in the fields of real estate, development, finance and construction.
As McElligott notes, “[the industry] is difficult – it still is very much a boys club. Women are not excluded, but they’re not included either. You have to stand up for yourself.”
Paul Wilson from Income2Wealth explains how you can be part of this revolutionary investment opportunity.
