How can I buy private Facebook stock?

[howardrourke]

SecondMarket and SharesPost both deal in private stock sales. Facebook sales are currently the majority of transaction on both of these sites. You will need to be an accredited investor (over $1 Million net worth or income of $200k annually for multiple years) to qualify. These sales are not particularly liquid and they are assuming very rich valuations for Facebook. The fees are very high for these types of private placement sales. These types of sales are difficult for small investors because you don't have the benefit of a liquid public market in pricing the company. In my opinion, unless you are a sophisticated investor or a venture capitalist, you are better off buying stock in the secondary market after the IPO.