To start investing with real estate, you will be asked to complete a questionnaire after creating your account which takes a few minutes.

Why the questionnaire is required for Real Estate

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Fractional real estate investments, where you invest in shares of a company (known as a Special Purpose Vehicle or SPV) that owns a property, are considered high-risk investments by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

These investments fall under the category of restricted mass market investments. This means they:

• Are not listed on a public exchange
• Can be difficult to sell or exit before maturity
• Carry the risk of losing some or all of your capital
• May have limited protections compared to regulated retail products

Because of this classification, the FCA requires additional checks before anyone is allowed to invest.

This is why, if you selected “Real Estate” on your Wahed dashboard, you’ll see a questionnaire designed to ensure that:

• You understand how fractional real estate investing works
• You’re aware of the risks involved, including illiquidity and lack of guarantees
• You’re assigned the correct investor classification based on your financial situation or experience

These checks are mandatory for all investors and exist to protect your interests.

Step-by-step process of completing your onboarding

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Step 1: Open the Wahed app and tap “Real Estate”

‍You’ll be taken to a dedicated dashboard for real estate investing.

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‍Step 2: Tap “Complete your onboarding”

This is shown at the top of your real estate dashboard.

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‍Step 3: Take the Appropriateness Questionnaire

‍This short six-question questionnaire that is designed to check your understanding of key risks and to assess whether this type of investment is right for you.

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Step 4: Select your Investor Type‍

You’ll declare whether you’re a High Net Worth, Self-Certified Sophisticated or Restricted Investor. This is required under FCA rules.

What is the appropriateness questionnaire?

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The Appropriateness Questionnaire is a regulatory requirement for high-risk investments. It’s designed to assess whether you understand the key characteristics and risks of investing in fractional real estate.

The test includes 6 multiple-choice questions on:

• What type of investment you are making (SPV shares, not listed securities)
• Whether your capital is at risk
• Whether returns are guaranteed
• How easy it is to exit your investment
• Whether the FSCS (Financial Services Compensation Scheme) applies
• Whether you should diversify your investments

Important to know:

• You must get all questions correct to proceed
• You will not be told which answers were incorrect
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What happens if you fail?

• If you fail once, you’ll need to wait 24 hours before retaking the test
• If you fail twice, you’ll be locked out of real estate investing for indefinitely. If this happens, you can still access other products (like investment portfolios) but you won’t be able to invest in real estate.
• These restrictions are part of the FCA’s risk control measures
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What happens if you pass?

• You move on to selecting the investor type

Understanding Investor Types

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Once you complete the questionnaire, you’ll be asked to confirm your Investor Type. Here are the three options:

1. High Net Worth Investor

You qualify if either:

• You have earned £100,000 or more in the last financial year (excluding one-off pension withdrawals), or
• You have £250,000 or more in net assets, not including your home or pension
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2. Self-Certified Sophisticated Investor

You qualify if any one of the following applies to you. In the last two years, you have: 

• Worked in private equity or finance for SMEs
• Been a director of a company with £1 million+ turnover
• Made 2 or more investments in unlisted companies
• Been a member of an investment syndicate for 6+ months
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3. Restricted Investor

You agree to:

• Invest less than 10% of your net assets into high-risk investments
• Acknowledge that your investment may be illiquid and capital is at risk

Each classification requires you to read and accept the terms and conditions, confirming you understand the risks involved.

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What happens next?

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Once you’ve completed both steps: passing the questionnaire and confirming your investor type, you’ll enter a 24-hour cooling-off period. This is mandatory and allows you time to reflect before making your first investment. 

Once the cooling-off period ends, you can proceed with your first investment

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What if I chose the wrong investor type or need to retake the questionnaire?

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If you believe you selected the wrong investor type, or if your situation has changed, contact our support team. The team can reset your status so you can go through the process again.

Resets may be granted for a range of valid reasons, such as:

• Changes to your financial situation or investment experience
  
  
• Errors made when completing your original submission
  
  
• Certain technical issues while taking the questionnaire

Our support team will guide you through the next steps and confirm what information is needed before a reset can be applied.

Tips before you begin

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Here are some ways to avoid common issues:

• Read the risk disclosures before attempting the questionnaire so you’re better versed with the risk profile.
  
  
• Don’t rush the questionnaire. Read each question and answer option carefully. Many users fail by selecting assumptions like “my capital is guaranteed.”
  
  
• Understand the investment structure. You’re investing in shares of a company (SPV), not buying property directly.
  
  
• Accept the risks honestly. If you're unsure, it's safer to select the “Restricted Investor” type, which still allows you to invest within set limits

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Frequently Asked Questions