Some funds can't take your money unless you pass a test

In private markets, some funds can't take your money, unless you pass a test. You have to be an accredited investor. One way: earn over two hundred thousand a year, two years running. Or three hundred thousand, with a spouse. Another: a net worth over one million, not counting your home. The home doesn't count. Or hold certain licenses, like the Series seven, sixty-five or eighty-two. Firms and institutions qualify on their assets, or on who owns them. It all comes from the SEC's rules for private offerings. Pass, and private offerings can open up. So why do investors care? It decides who can be sold a private fund, and who is shut out. The door has a test.