New Funding Resources 
One of the questions we get a lot, especially from new real estate investors is, “How do I deal with risk?” I wish investing was a sure thing, but there really is no such thing as a “sure thing.” There is always the possibility of losing money just like there is always a possibility of making money. It’s all about dealing with risk. But you can help minimize that risk by using experienced hard money lenders. Here are some other tips for handling risk in your investments.
real estate investing
How to Build a Great Investment Team: Part 5
Have you ever heard the phrase “It takes a village to raise a child?” As we continue our private mortgage lender series on building a great investment team, it may feel like we are truly recruiting a village. Today we will focus on a team member you may not have thought about, the interior decorator. Unlike a real estate agent or contractor, interior decorators might not be necessary for each project. However, for certain fix and flips, spending money on interior decorator might actually help improve your return on investment.
How to Build a Great Investment Team: Part 4
As hard money lenders, we cannot overemphasize the importance of finding the right contractor. A reliable contractor can significantly improve your return on investment. In contrast, an incompetent contractor can flush your profits down the drain. If you are a first time investor, finding a reliable contractor should be your priority.
Finding Real Estate Deals: REO
I am a private mortgage lender and as such I’ve seen successful investors draw on different types of skills. Some are handy and can build sweat equity by doing parts of their rehab themselves. Others are negotiators and managers extraordinaire. They are the ones who squeeze every penny, negotiate for every nail and breathe down the neck of their contractors every day. Working with them is not a picnic for contractors, but those investors do make money when their softer competitors don’t. Still, regardless of their skills, all of those investors share a single strength in common: an ability to find real estate investment opportunities. Identifying properties with money-making potential and putting them under contract is at the heart of real estate investing.
How to Build a Great Investment Team: Part 3
On every team you have what can be considered the “support players.” We’d like to consider ourselves support players for our hard money loan customers. Support players are the people who work hard, but don’t always get recognized as star players. This is not to say that these people are not important. In fact without these people the whole process would break down, but you don’t hear them mentioned as much as the lawyer, lender or real estate agent. These are still key members of your team, so you need to choose them wisely and recognize their worth.
How to Build a Great Investment Team: Part 2
Being experts in hard money loans, we are sometimes asked if it’s a good idea to have a lawyer as part of your real estate investment team. Here is the answer. A friend once told me that the interesting thing about being an attorney was that no one wants you until they need you and no one wants to need you. As humorous as that sounds, the truth is that if you are going to do any type of investment business, you are going to need an attorney as a key member of your team. Everything you do needs to be above board, and attorneys are part of the process to make sure that happens.
