If you have $5,000, you can now buy a part of the World Trade Center and own an iconic piece of New York City. The developers of Three World Trade Center are turning to crowdfunding to drum up excitement and help pay for the forthcoming building, which is already under construction in lower Manhattan. Upon completion, the tower will be the third largest at the WTC site, although the project has been stalled a few times due to inadequate financial backing. This new crowdfunding effort seeks to end those problems.
Real estate tycoon and owner Larry Silverstein completed Four World Trade Center, the first tower to open at the site, back in 2013. Silverstein spent much of last year trying to organize funds for the second skyscraper. Now he’s enlisted the help of Fundrise, a real estate crowdfunding company, to raise the money needed to finish the next tower. Individual investors can put as little as $5,000 into bonds for the Richard Rogers-designed building and the total cost of the 80-story tower is expected to be around $2 billion. According to Fundrise, at least $2 million of that amount will be sourced via crowdfunding.
Related: Plans for World Trade Center Liberty Park include 300-foot living wall
Not just any old Joe with the cash can invest, though. Each investor has to meet the requirements for income or net worth set by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Crowdfunding investors will be promised a 5-percent tax-free annual return over five years. Construction of the tower is expected to be complete in late 2017.
+ 3 World Trade Center Fundrise Campaign
Via Bloomberg
Images via Morgan Davis and Port Authority of NY and NJ.
