Private Money / Hard Money Lenders

Dixie, I haven't really used any yet, but if you don't get another answer tonight,I would try again tomorrow. Seems kind of quiet on here tonight. But I did take a workshop on PML, and it was eye opening. Can't tell anything tonight, have a pet who is having some problems and may have to get him to the vet asap in the morning. So need to spend some time checking him out right now.
But will share with you some things I learned about finding them.
Maybe someone can still help you tonight. But if not send me a PM in the morning.
Sandi

Many HMLs loan only within a local geography. If you haven't joined your local REI Club, find it and go to a meeting, or at least explore their website. This is one of the best places for referrals.
Private money usually comes at first from family, friends and associates until you have a proven track record.
Try searching "I buy houses YOUR CITY NAME" and call the investors who come up and ask for HM referrals. Some may prove to be very helpful.
Also do a search on this site for "hard money". I remember a post a few months ago listing lots of national lenders.
It is not necessarily a red flag if one physical address has multiple companies - could just be effective marketing.

I just saw someone refer somebody else to www.reiclub.com for links to HML's. I looked at it myself and there are quite a few listed on there. I am omly familiar with dohardmoney.com but have no experience with them.

If you can get by with transactional funds for a quick flip I have a couple lenders that were recommended by the Success Academy.
www.insiderscash.com
www.besttransactionfunding.com
also www.coastalfunding.com has been used a lot by other DGers.

Sorry I couldn't be more help on the Private Lenders.

Steve

I can speak on this from experience. A BAD experience. While I'm not going to recommend any lenders, this is what you need to check when determining whether or not to do business with a lender.

1. Check to make sure they are registered and licensed with the DRE (Dept of
RE)in your state
2. Check to make sure they are registered and licensed with the NMLS.
(National Mortgage Lending System) (http://www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org/)
3. Check the BBB
4. Ask for and CALL referrals

There's one more thing, but I can't remember it off the top of my head. If I don't get back to this thread please MP me a nudge to get back here

If they ask you for any money upfront-run away!

Call them and interview them; have your questions written down; ask them for referrals. If they are a legitimate company, they will be more than happy to provide that information and more...

wishing you success,

valerie

Has anyone found any new hard money guys

The best thing is what steinway024 said - get a local referral. See if there is someone in your area - find them via an REI club or someone you've put on your buyer's list.

We us a guy in Denver and he is great. But only does Denver. Most of the time a local person will give you better terms since they know the market and the property you will be using the funds for. Since most hard money people are also investors themselves they will be happy to take the property from you if you default.

Best of luck!

You need to be very careful with hard money lenders today. Many are no longer in business. There are alot of people selling directories of hard money lenders on the web and even some providing these for free, and that is a great thing on the front end, however, the list was posted years ago and you can't count on that.

Many HML's are simply out of business. Lenders are just not lending these days. This is not to suggest that there are not any lending, but this is the case with many.

You have to think real hard about costs, fees, commitment fees, how many hoops you will have to jump through to get the money from a HML. I know several who are still lending. last year they were at 60-65% of LTV and this year, 40 to 50%.

They will not allow seller financing and they expect a borrower to be able to source the funds. What this means is that you have to show you have the funds and they generally have to be seasoned, meaning they have been sitting in the bank for a period of time.

You also need to think about profit and loss and what is going to drive that. If you are using hard money for a residential deal, the second you go to closing, consider a portion of if not all of your profit could have just went poof!!! when you take into account the upfront fees, and everything that comes off the top, you could lose your profit.

The HML could care less if you make money, just as long as they make their fee's. If your going to use HM for a commercial deal, you could be okay on the deal but again, maybe not.

You have two options that are viable. The first is private money. You get to steer the ship on this, because it is you who is directing the way the deal goes, profit allocations, etc.

The other option is transactional funding. You need to really do your homework on each of the transactional funders and go with the best one for your deal. Some are better than others. I recently saw where one wants the investor, which would be you to come to the table with 1% of the purchase price as a show of what is called "Skin in the game". If you are working with zero funds, then having to come up with 1% is going to be a challenge for some.

You make a very good point. I should have probably added that in. Denver seems to be a market that people want in on.

What's going on out there in Denver?

One hard money lender I like to refer is http://www.dohardmoney.com/. They do only lend in a handful of states though. I like them because they can do 100% financing and even cover some rehab if you buy the property right. They have different terms depending on the length of the loan. Another nice thing I like about them is they do not require a monthly payment. If you invest in a state they lend in, this can be a great way to fund your deals.

Okay, so we are biased. Things here are going well. We are closing on a duplex with a 3rd unit on Friday to hold for rent.

The main issue with Denver is prices haven't dropped much here...in most cases home prices just flattened for some time. Rents are good, but rents are not as high as the home prices. That's why we mainly purchase to hold for rent duplexes to fourplexes.

There are some good rehabbers in the area so if you can get a good deal on a forclosure or a home that never hit the MLS there is great opportunity. Same goes for short sales if you have someone on your team that's a good negociator. Assignments and Double Closes are still good options here.

Hope you are all kicking butt!

many hml's are making more money now than ever before because more investors know this is the time to buy and there are so many good deals out there.

I agree with you 100%. Hard money works great for residential purchases. Rehab and flip or rehab and re fi out of the HM. If you have money available from a cheaper source then use it. Sometimes the timing is wrong and you will miss a deal with out using HM!
Also, you factor in all your expenses before you make an offer! Points and interest costs for the HM before you make your offer. Waiting until closing and then discovering you made no money comes from a lack of planning or crooked lenders that were not checked out up front.
Also, HM is not a no money down strategy. Most require 6 months of interest payments in the bank BEFORE they will loan to you. For new investors it is better to get a few deals under your belt before jumping into a HM deal. You really need to know your numbers and time frames to make this work.
Learning how to find, evaluate ARVs and Rehab costs MUST come before searching for HM lenders. In my opinion it is a waste of time for new investors. Learn the ropes first!
Finally, use a local HM lender whenever possible. They will most likely be legitimate. Get info from your local REI club. Use a national company as a LAST resort and do LOTS of due diligence first! Up front fees? RUN AWAY!

Michael Mangham
MD Home Acquisitions LLC

made by all.

Michael I know you always emphasize the importance of learning to evaluate properties and the costs, especially the repairs. I am trying to learn this stuff as fast as I can and my greatest hurdle, by far, is estimating fix-up costs.

I know this isn't the subject of this thread so may I PM you for advice on how to best learn this?

Thanks
Steve