Other brokers that just want to sell you a DST will simply provide a list of available products and call it a day. We actually have an investment philosophy and know what qualities to look for in a sponsor. We want to share that knowledge with our investors in order for them to make the most informed decisions. We believe a confident investor is a happy one.
We work with all the top sponsors and have access to a wide range of DSTs, Opportunity Zone and Alternative Funds. However, that does not mean we choose to work with all of them. Breakwater carefully vets the available offering before we even have a conversation with the client. We want to make sure they fit our investment standards, then listen to you as a client to recommend those that best fit your and investment goals and needs. We can’t guarantee success, but can promise our investors a better long-term relationship and thoughtful recommendations, not just a menu of all the possible options.
Aside from finding the right Qualified Intermediary to help you make the exchange, you want to find a firm you can trust to help you educate you on ALL your options. Here’s why hundreds of investors have chosen Breakwater Capital over the years:
We have the same access as bigger firms, but instead go to great lengths to make sure we are only providing solutions that have been thoroughly vetted to fit our investment standards. We then listen to you and recommend only those that match your investment criteria & goals. Instead of just offering a menu of potential deals, we want to get to know you, narrow the field, then educate you on what’s important to your unique situation. We believe that investors will comprehend the offerings much more this way and therefore feel more confident in their choices
Our platform offers an accessible way to identify and acquire property more efficiently. We can streamline the process from initial identification to closing, helping to significantly reduce the time and effort that goes into making the final investment decision. We aim to make this a pleasant process by taking a lot of the stress and complexity out of the equation.
Unlike other brokers, we offer the entire gamut of 1031 exchange solutions, not just DSTs. We believe that if you only work with one option an inherent conflict of interest is present. There are several different types of real estate ownership structures that solve the capital gains dilemma. The correct one for you depends on multiple factors which we aim to uncover.
Our broker dealer, Emerson Equity, has team members licensed in all 50 states,, Washington DC and the US Virgin Islands. We have offices in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston, New York City, and Washington, DC, over 150 years of collective real estate experience, and over $30 billion of DST participation. No matter if you live near one of our offices or not, we have representatives who would be happy to meet with you.
We have access to offerings from virtually all of the asset managers in the marketplace. However, we reject certain properties that do not pass our robust due diligence process due to high risk, high fees and/or a lack of previous performance. This is more than just broker dealer due diligence – although we have that too. Many of our competitors will still offer these properties that we’ve rejected, so be vigilant and always understand the risks.
These exclusive DST properties are only available to our clients and often have a dramatically lower fee structure than standard DSTs. Lower fees means more of your hard earned dollars in the ground and working for you!
We aim to advise our clients as it pertains to their entire investment portfolio, not just real estate holdings. Investment planning is an ongoing process with many moving parts. We would be remiss if we did not take your other investments and unique circumstances into account. Other firms may just want to sell you DSTs, we are financial planners who bring much more knowledge and possibilities to the table.
Some of the big brokers also have their own DSTs operated under a different brand. They will entice investors by saying that they will do the exchange for less commission, then in turn place them into DSTs that they are the sponsor on, collecting even higher fees. We believe these deceptive practices are highly unethical and a huge conflict of interest. The only reason it is “exclusive” is because they are the only ones recommending these DSTs. They tend to be lower quality offerings that often over-promise and underdeliver. Breakwater does not have any conflict of interest like this, we only represent the client and recommend offerings based on their quality.
Our President, Josh Chapin, will be your single point-of-contact and will never pass you off to another advisor - not many firms can say that. We want to build trusted, long-term relationships with our clients and be a resource for a lifetime. If you value client service and a direct access with your advisor, we are the firm for you.
Our team members are proud to be personally invested in many of the offerings we work with. We don’t just assist others, we practice what we preach and can give you advice based on personal experience
You will never speak with anyone other than Josh when it comes to advice, a fully-licensed DST expert with over a decade of experience in the field. We want to actually build a relationship and be a long-term resource.
Large DST brokers must place very large sums of exchange funds in a given year, some over $100M. Therefore, they have to utilize many more DSTs to place these funds. We can be much more discerning and selective because we are not obligated to take on such large volumes of investor money. We carefully vet each offering and make sure they fit our investment standards, then listen to you as a client to recommend those that best fit your risk tolerance and investment goals. We want our clients to get the best of the best, not just offer all the possible options. We believe that investors will understand and comprehend the investments much more this way and therefore feel more confident in their decision making.
Others may just advise on a DST with no respect to the client’s overall financial picture. We are full service financial planners specializing in alternative investments that can provide a much more well-rounded plan (at no extra cost). Real estate is just a component of a much larger picture, and we have the experience, knowledge and tools to take all these other things into consideration. Do you want a financial advisor or a DST salesman?
*We do not recommend these to clients for various reasons
There are many questions we want to make sure are considered before we recommend a sponsor and offering to a client:
1. Does the sponsor have a good reputation and an established track record?
2. Do they have strong and experienced leadership?
3. Are their fees reasonable/industry standard? (Should be 2-3% of purchase price)
4. Are their fees subordinate? (Investors need to get paid before them)
5. Does the sponsor participate in the appreciation? (They should not)
1. Is it in a historically recession resilient asset class?
2. What are the quality of the tenants?
3. Does the lease have over 10-15 years left? (Commercial Properties)
4. Is the property located in a landlord friendly state?
5. Is the property located in an income tax-free state?
6. What is the strength of the economic anchor/indicators?
7. What is the local market competition like?
7. Is the financing fixed?
8. Are the financials projections sound?
9. Is there a sufficient reserve capital fund?
Breakwater typically recommends assets that historically have less correlation to the economy or reliant on any single factor. We want our clients invested in assets that have the potential to perform in any economic weather and provide services people will always need.
We are aggressively seeking to acquire properties pursuant to the following investment criteria:
Start making more informed choices for your financial future with Breakwater Capital. Schedule a free in-person or virtual consultation so we can get to know each other. During our meeting we will discuss your finances at length to determine if Breakwater Capital is right for you.
Fill out a Contact Form to Request More Information or Schedule a Consultation
9940 Research Dr. Suite 200 Irvine, CA 92618
(310) 940-9430
Josh@Breakwater1031.com
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All investing involves risk of loss of some or all principal invested. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. There can be no guarantee that any investment or strategy will achieve its stated objectives. Speak to your tax and/or financial professional prior to investing. Securities and advisory services through Emerson Equity LLC, member FINRA and SIPC and a registered investment adviser. Emerson is not affiliated with any other entity identified herein.
There is no guarantee that any strategy will be successful or achieve investment objectives; Potential for property value loss – All real estate investments have the potential to lose value during the life of the investments; Change of tax status – The income stream and depreciation schedule for any investment property may affect the property owner’s income bracket and/or tax status. An unfavorable tax ruling may cancel deferral of capital gains and result in immediate tax liabilities; Potential for foreclosure – All fnanced real estate investments have potential for foreclosure; Illiquidity –These assets are commonly offered through private placement offerings and are illiquid securities. There is no secondary market for these investments;Reduction or Elimination of Monthly Cash Flow Distributions – Like any investment in real estate, if a property unexpectedly loses tenants or sustains substantial damage, there is potential for suspension of cash flow distributions; Impact of fees/expenses – Costs associated with the transaction may impact investors’ returns and may outweigh the tax benefts. Stated tax benefts – Any stated tax benefts are not guaranteed and are subject to changes in the tax code. Speak to your tax professional prior to investing.
Investing in opportunity zones is speculative. Opportunity zones are newly formed entities with no operating history. There is no assurance of investment return, property appreciation, or profits. The ability to resell the fund’s underlying investment properties or businesses is not guaranteed. Investing in opportunity zone funds may involve a higher level of risk than investing in other established real estate offerings. Long-term investment. Opportunity zone funds have illiquid underlying investments that may not be easy to sell and the return of capital and realization of gains, if any, from an investment will generally occur only upon the partial or complete disposition or refinancing of such investments. Limited secondary market for redemption. Although secondary markets may provide a liquidity option in limited circumstances, the amount you will receive typically is discounted to current valuations. Difficult valuation assessment. The portfolio holdings in opportunity zone funds may be difficult to value because financial markets or exchanges do not usually quote or trade the holdings. As such, market prices for most of a fund’s holdings will not be readily available. Capital call default consequences. Meeting capital calls to provide managers with the pledged capital is a contractual obligation of each investor. Failure to meet this requirement in a timely manner could elicit significant adverse consequences, including, without limitation, the forfeiture of your interest in the fund. Leverage. Opportunity zone funds may use leverage in connection with certain investments or participate in investments with highly leveraged capital structures. Leverage involves a high degree of financial risk and may increase the exposure of such investments to factors such as rising interest rates, downturns in the economy or deterioration in the condition of the assets underlying such investments. Unregistered investment. As with other unregistered investments, the regulatory protections of the Investment Company Act of 1940 are not available with unregistered securities. Regulation. It is possible, due to tax, regulatory, or investment decisions, that a fund, or its investors, are unable realize any tax benefits. You should evaluate the merits of the underlying investment and not solely invest in an opportunity zone fund for any potential tax advantage.
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