Cardone Capital Review: Minimums, Fees and How It Works

How it works

Cardone Capital review: what is it and how does it work?

This Cardone Capital review starts with the basics: Cardone Capital is Grant Cardone's real estate firm, and it sells units in its own apartment funds. Cardone Capital LLC, the manager, picks and runs the properties.

The filings call Grant Cardone the manager's "sole decision maker." They describe a focus on Class A and B apartments, mostly in Florida and other Sunbelt states, the core of multifamily investing.

Each property sits in an LLC that a Regulation A fund, a Regulation D fund and Grant Cardone can co-own. The company's page for Cardone Equity Fund 29 says it pairs a 282-unit Naples, Florida property with "a strategic Bitcoin allocation."

On October 27, 2026, its home page reported 20,020 investors, $5.4 billion of assets under management and $642 million of investor distributions. Its August 2026 offering circular says the team had raised about $1.9 billion across 28 funds for 35 properties as of June 30, 2026.

How do Cardone's Reg A and Reg D funds differ?

Cardone's Reg A and Reg D funds differ mainly in who can buy and how much. Regulation A funds are SEC-qualified small public offerings open to non-accredited investors. Rule 506(c) funds under Regulation D are private and for accredited investors only. Recent Reg D funds each buy one named property, which works more like a syndication than a blind-pool fund. The Reg A funds pool several properties.

The Reg D side is older. The first Form D, for Cardone Equity Fund, LLC, was filed on July 26, 2017. EDGAR shows numbered Reg D funds through Fund 29 since then.

Legit check

Is Cardone Capital legit?

Cardone Capital is an operating sponsor with years of SEC filings, and it also faces a pending, certified investor class action. Here is the public record on October 27, 2026.

• Filings: its funds have filed Form D notices since 2017, and four Reg A funds were qualified by the SEC.
• Registration: searches of FINRA BrokerCheck and the SEC's adviser database found no broker-dealer or investment adviser registered as Cardone Capital. An affiliate, Cardone Wealth Advisors, LLC, was SEC-registered as an adviser until its registration was terminated on October 15, 2026; its record discloses the Pino case below. The funds are sold directly by the company, with no sales commission.
• Proceedings: the funds' latest filings disclose the lawsuit below as the pending legal proceeding.

The Pino v. Cardone Capital class action

Investor Luis Pino sued Cardone Capital, Grant Cardone and Funds V and VI in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on September 16, 2020. Christine Pino, his successor-in-interest, is now the plaintiff. The suit alleges misleading statements about those Reg A funds on Instagram and YouTube, including a projected 15% annualized return and claims about who carried the funds' debt.

• April 2021: the district court dismissed the case.
• December 21, 2022: the Ninth Circuit held that promoting a security in mass communication, such as social media, can count as soliciting a purchase, and revived some claims.
• October 4, 2023: the district court dismissed the second amended complaint with prejudice.
• June 10, 2025: the Ninth Circuit reversed again. It held that the plaintiff had stated three kinds of claims: misleading opinions about the internal rate of return and distribution projections; an omission, by not disclosing an SEC letter that asked Cardone to remove those projections from offering materials; and misstatements about the funds' debt obligations.
• March 27, 2026: the district court certified a class, according to the August 2026 offering circular. The notice site defines the class as anyone who bought or otherwise acquired Fund V or Fund VI interests through their public offerings, and lists a jury trial for March 9, 2027.

The court has not decided who is right. The class notice says defendants deny making "any materially false or misleading statement or omission." In SEC filings, the manager says it does not believe the case will interfere with its ability to manage the funds.

Public review data is thin. On October 27, 2026, Cardone Capital's Trustpilot page showed one review in the past 12 months, too few to summarize.

Minimums

What is the Cardone Capital minimum investment, and who can invest?

The Cardone Capital minimum investment is $200,000 for its current Reg D fund, which is for accredited investors only, and $5,000 for its Reg A fund.

• Reg D (Fund 29): the company page lists a $200,000 minimum under Rule 506(c). Its Form D, filed August 19, 2026, shows $5,000,000 in the minimum-investment field, so ask which figure applies to you. Earlier Form Ds on EDGAR list $100,000 or $250,000 for most funds; Fund XIV lists $1,000,000 and Fund 28 lists $5,000,000.
• Reg A (Cardone Non Accredited Fund): units cost $100, and the minimum is $5,000. Non-accredited buyers can invest no more than 10% of the greater of annual income or net worth. The offering is limited to U.S. persons.

The accredited investor rules explain the income and net worth tests for the Reg D funds.

Fee layers

What fees does Cardone Capital charge?

Cardone Capital charges no sales commission, but its manager earns several 1% fees and a share of the fund's cash. The fullest public list is in the Reg A offering circular dated August 24, 2026. On the Reg D side, the Fund 29 Form D confirms a 1% acquisition fee; full terms sit in each fund's private memorandum.

• Acquisition fee: 1% of each property's purchase price.
• Asset management fee: 1% a year of the capital investors put in.
• Financing coordination fee: 1% of each loan, including refinances.
• Disposition fee: 1% of the sale price.
• Property management: market-rate fees, with part paid to a Cardone affiliate.
• Other affiliate fees: construction, repairs, brokerage and professional services at market rates.
• Manager's profit share: Class B units held by the manager are entitled to 20% of distributable cash in the newer Reg A funds, and 35% in Funds V and VI. Investors get their capital back first on a sale.

The filings describe no preferred return before the manager's share. The manager may defer its share and catch up later. The Cardone Non Accredited Fund had paid nothing on its Class B units through June 30, 2026, with $818,211 deferred. Fund V paid its manager $880,768 of the $3,649,849 it distributed in 2024, about 24%. REIT I said that catching up at December 31, 2025 would have meant $2,130,575 to the manager's Class B units. The guide to sponsor fees and the promote shows how these layers compare.

Leverage magnifies the acquisition fee. On a property bought with 60% debt, a 1% fee on the price equals 2.5% of the equity.

Track record

What returns has Cardone Capital paid?

Cardone Capital's filings show cash distributions, but no realized total returns yet, because no fund has sold its properties. The August 2026 offering circular says that as of June 30, 2026, "none of the Projects were sold or transferred."

• Fund V: in 2024 it paid Class A investors $2,769,081, which it called a 5.5% annual rate. Through 2024 it had made $15,769,054 of capital distributions on $50 million raised.
• Fund VI: in 2024 it paid Class A investors $1,470,848, which it called a 5% annual rate. Through 2024 it had made $8,335,710 of capital distributions on $29,463,000 raised.
• REIT I: through 2025 it had distributed $8,522,301 to Class A investors. It reported net losses of $5,255,548 for 2025, which the manager says were driven mainly by non-cash depreciation and amortization.
• Cardone Non Accredited Fund: distributions began in July 2024 and totaled $4,468,957 by June 30, 2026.

The company says it has "never missed a distribution to our investors." Distributions can include returned capital, and the manager sets them at its discretion. For Funds V and VI, the most recent annual reports on EDGAR cover 2024.

Getting out

Can you sell or redeem a Cardone Capital investment?

You generally cannot redeem a Cardone Capital investment on request. For the Reg A fund, the offering circular says plainly: "we do not currently have a redemption program and have no intention of adopting one."

• Hold period: investors "should expect to remain in the Company for a minimum of ten (10) years." The manager aims to sell by year ten but is not required to, so the hold could run longer.
• Transfers: there is no market for the units. A private sale needs the manager's approval and a buyer who meets the same standards.
• Disputes: the operating agreement requires mediation and arbitration, though not for federal securities claims.

Funds V and VI, raised in 2018 to 2020, still held their properties in mid-2026. The guide to selling private real estate early covers your options in general.

Fit and compare

Who may Cardone Capital fit, and who may want something else?

Cardone Capital may fit investors who want one manager to run everything, with a focus on Florida and Sunbelt apartments. Its Reg A fund also gives non-accredited investors a $5,000 entry to a private apartment fund.

Others may want something else, such as investors who:

• May need the money back within ten years.
• Want a preferred return before the manager shares in cash.
• Want to compare several sponsors, not one.
• Do not want Bitcoin exposure in a real estate fund.
• Want to see completed, sold deals before investing.

How does Cardone Capital compare with Relli?

Cardone Capital sells its own funds, while Relli is a marketplace for offerings from several sponsors. On both, you deal directly with the sponsor's team.

Relli has limits too: few open offerings, higher minimums than Cardone's Reg A fund, and mostly accredited investors. Comparing with Fundrise instead? Fundrise sells its own funds and charges a 0.15% advisory fee plus a 0.85% management fee a year on its real estate funds. The Relli vs Fundrise page covers that model.

Before you invest

What should you ask before investing with Cardone Capital?

Before investing with Cardone Capital, ask these questions in writing and check the answers against the offering documents.

• Which minimum applies to this fund: the $200,000 on the web page or the figure on the Form D?
• What does this fund's memorandum list for every fee, and is there any preferred return?
• How much of the fund goes to Bitcoin, and who decides when to buy or sell it?
• How much debt is on the property, and who is personally responsible for it?
• How much is Grant Cardone investing in this property himself?
• How much of past distributions came from operations, and how much returned capital?
• How does the Pino class action affect this fund, if at all?
• What happens if the manager does not sell by year ten?

The guide to vetting a real estate sponsor gives a full checklist, and how to read a PPM shows where these answers sit.