Jonas Björkman, CEO of Tessin.

In our series "Tips from the Expert", we have a chat with Jonas Björkman, who was recently lauded as CEO of one of Europe's hottest startups. In just a few short years, Tessin has grown to become the Nordic region's largest real estate investment platform, with over 3,500 active investors..

How has the company managed to grow so quickly?
– We challenge an otherwise very traditional industry, which has previously only been available to a select few. Through Tessin's platform an interested individual can access projects, invest in property, and ultimately receive a good return.

Investing in real estate has been historically proven to be a good investment but is it an equally valuable investment today?
– Yes, absolutely. When banks reduce their lending to real estate projects due to regulatory requirements, which has happened in the past year, the market opens up for more private investors. We clearly notice that there are many more projects that are now looking for investors than noted previously. This means that today, even as a small player, you can have access to many more property projects to invest in and also opportunities to receive high rates of return. We’re talking about current projects that allow you to receive access to similar kinds of collateral that the banks have traditionally received.

Risk spreading is a well-known concept within investment and something that most experts advocate. Why should real estate investments be seen as a natural part of an investment portfolio?
– When investing it’s always wise to have a diversified portfolio. Including properties in an investment is a good way to spread the risks simply because properties do not have any connection to the stock market. In real estate, it’s not the stock market that affects an investment but other factors instead. A stock can increase in value, or at the same time decrease in value. However, this is not the case with real estate. With all projects we currently make available on Tessin’s platform, we ensure that there are secured credits, often through mortgages and guarantees, which results in a good balance between risk and return for those who invest.

Are you interested in investesting within the Swedish real estate industry? Sign up to get more information about the investment opportunities at Tessin.com!