Anna-Marie Lieb is a real estate professional with 12+ years of experience in real estate syndication, debt, and equity placement. Anna-Marie is the head of multi-housing and is a key decision-maker and CrowdStreet Investment Committee member.
Prior to joining CrowdStreet, Anna-Marie worked for the Tax Credit Investment Group at PNC, specializing in underwriting innovative tax credit equity and debt financing solutions for historic tax credit and low-income housing tax credit investments. Anna-Marie started her real estate career in Boston, where she was a member of the CBRE New England Capital Markets Team. Anna-Marie holds a B.Sc. in economics with a concentration in real estate from the Wharton School of Business.
Anna-Marie's Investing Style
How many years of investing experience do you have? 10-20 years
What is your investing risk tolerance? Medium
What is your portfolio size? Large (20+ stocks)
What is your favorite investing sector? Real Estate
What makes that sector so interesting to you? I've been working in the commercial real estate industry for over a decade. Initially, the tangible underlying assets drew me to the space. As an investment, it's easy to relate to -- we all sleep somewhere, eat somewhere, work somewhere, and much of our day-to-day lives are spent in various buildings.
But as you start to unpack the sector, so many nuances go along with these tangible assets that make it such an interesting sector. There are different ways to capitalize assets. You can utilize traditional financing, tax credit financing, institutional capital, capital from retail investors, and 1031 exchange capital; you can structure a deal as an opportunity zone.
There are also the different asset classes, markets and economic factors that all play into investment decisions and shape how you structure a deal that delivers the property's most advantageous risk-reward profile. It's a sector in which I keep improving and learning something new every day, and that keeps it exciting and interesting.
When did you start your investing/personal finance journey and why?
My personal investing journey started in my mid-20s when I reached a stage in life where I had the capital to place outside my 401(k) contributions. That's when I started building my portfolio of stocks, bonds, and real estate investment trusts (REITs).
In terms of direct investments in commercial real estate, although I had been underwriting and analyzing investments for institutional capital, I didn't start directly investing in assets on my behalf until I began working at CrowdStreet.
The CrowdStreet platform enables investors to invest directly and passively into commercial real estate offerings at minimum check sizes of $25,000. That really opened the door to building a portfolio of passive investments across different real estate assets, with top sponsors in markets throughout the United States.
Can you tell us a little bit about your relationships with money at an early age?
I'm a first-generation Canadian, as my parents emigrated from Sweden in the 70s. My father was an entrepreneur who worked on many different ventures throughout my upbringing -- everything from consulting to structuring land deals to starting a winery. There was always a focus on reinvestment in the next venture.
I think my biggest takeaway from this was the constant stress and pressure my father was under. Although he thrived under it, I knew it didn't necessarily suit my personality. This shaped my relationship with money in that it led me to realize I wanted financial security through stable employment in a field where I could make a high income and build wealth through passive investment.
So to embark on this journey, I set my sights on school, which led me to pursue my undergraduate degree at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. There, I was first exposed to commercial real estate and ended up with a concentration in real estate finance, spent two summers interning with a development firm, and truly cemented my journey into the world of commercial real estate and investing.
In what ways have your social or cultural identities and lived experiences positively impacted your investing journey?
As a woman in an industry largely dominated by men, I've found that I bring a different perspective to the table when it comes to analyzing deals. This added diversity could uncover a different area of focus or way to structure a given opportunity that may have been missed otherwise. I do believe that a diverse investment committee will ultimately lead to a deeper analysis and, hopefully, result in improved investment decisions.
What advice would you give to a younger person who may be experiencing market volatility for the first time?
I think it's important to clearly define your investment goals and plan accordingly. What are your investment outlook and time horizon? Is this capital you need to access, or are you looking to invest long term? Ideally, there is diversification in your portfolio to average out any large swings and volatility that may affect certain asset classes compared to others. Lastly, refer to those clearly defined goals and don't make any panicked decisions based on sudden market swings.
If you could go back in time and change one thing about your investing strategy, what would you change and why?
I would have started earlier. I participate in the University of Pennsylvania's alumni interview program for undergraduate applicants. Many interesting investment programs at the high school level introduce students to investment opportunities and provide access and education. Growing up, investing was a topic I was not necessarily exposed to, so I find it super exciting that it's becoming more prevalent today to help bring this access and education to our youth!
What are three things that really excite you about the future of investing?
Access, innovation, and information. I believe we are in a very exciting time for personal investing. Since the passing of the JOBS Act, much innovation within the industry has provided access to alternative retail investments that didn't exist before. In commercial real estate prior to 2013, unless you knew an owner or developer, it was incredibly difficult to gain direct access to this asset class. Access was essentially limited to a select few within these networks.
Fast-forward to today, and we now have platforms like CrowdStreet providing accredited real estate investors access to various commercial real estate offerings. That has created a more equitable investing environment where access isn't necessarily dependent on your network. Further, I believe great strides are being made in providing access to information, whether through online courses, podcasts, or other resources. So many formats are available that are tailored to individuals' various learning preferences that it has never been easier to tap these resources.
What scares you about the future of investing?
Where there is access and innovation, there is also a dark side, specifically in industries that don't necessarily have proper regulation. We've seen this play out recently in the crypto space with the downfall of FTX. It is so important that investors understand what they are investing, the risks associated with those investments, and the credibility of the resources they are using to research/educate themselves on given investments.
Who are some finance industry leaders you admire and why?
Dr. Peter Linneman had a real impact on me during my time at Wharton. I had the pleasure of taking his Real Estate Entrepreneurship class as an undergraduate. Today, I frequently tune into his webinars and am an avid reader of his quarterly Linneman Letters. As an economist, Dr. Linneman can apply economic data to investment decisions in an approachable manner and has been a leader within the commercial real estate space.
What are some of your favorite educational resources (books, podcasts, websites, etc.) that you’d recommend for investors of all ages?
I’m a big fan of podcasts. I tune in weekly to Treppwire, Walker & Dunlop’s Driven by Insight, Pivot, and TechCrunch’s Equity, and I really enjoy episodes of Acquired, Every Company Has a Story.
What’s one quote or saying that inspires or challenges you?
Not a quote, but the idea that you shouldn’t worry about the things you can’t control and instead focus on the things you can.
