I
In today’s financial climate
having access to private financ-
ing is crucial. So how can real
estate investors become better
at attracting private money, and
landing attractive hard money
loans today? What best practic-
es and tools can investors adopt
today for maximizing their time,
and finding the capital they need
to fully capitalize on the opportu-
nities in the real estate market?
Mark Hanf, co-host of The Best of In-
vesting, every Saturday at 1 pm on AM910
Fox News Radio, and founder of Pacific
Private Money in the Bay Area, dishes the
411 on private money in 2014.
The New Private
Money Landscape
The hard and private money arena has
changed dramatically over the last decade.
The players are different, Dodd Frank has
instituted new rules and in terms of fi-
nancing: The mortgage market has almost
come around full circle.
So is it harder or easier to get a loan
today, and who might be needlessly sitting
on the fence when money is out there for
the taking?
Mark Hanf highlights the fact that many
private and hard money lenders in business
today have only entered the market since
2008. This means most aren’t the “If you
can fog a mirror you can have the cash”
players of the boom of the early 2000s,
and they aren’t bitter or too overly cau-
tious from experiencing being burned be-
fore like the bank down the street. Instead,
Mark describes the current landscape of
lenders as “serious, and effective lenders
that have been providing the bulk of the fi-
nancing to investors for the last six years.”
Two years ago Pacific Private Money’s
clientele was 75% flippers. Now Hanf says
the San Francisco-based lender is making
“more consumer loans, and is ever broad-
ening its product offering.”
One of the most exciting developments
being unleashed is private money con-
struction loans now becoming available
Realty411Guide.com
from Pacific Private
Money. The firm’s
founder says they ac-
tually make advanced
draws to begin con-
struction, in contrast
to most banks, which
work in reverse and
make borrowers shell
out their own cash
first, and then request
draws.
In terms of how
tough hard money lenders are on approv-
ing loans today, Hanf says “We are not
score driven, but we do want to get a sense
for how a client handles their credit.” In
the case of real estate investors with expe-
rience from the last boom who are eager
to get back in, Hanf adds “We aren’t afraid
of past foreclosure or bankruptcy, if they
have experience, and have been getting
back on track.”
Investors should still expect lenders
to be looking for some skin in the game
today, but Hanf is quick to point out that
“100% OPM financed deals are definitely
possible today,” detailing “one of the best
ways to achieve this is smart use of lever-
age with a hard money loan, coupled with
private investor money.”
In particular Mark points to the use of
‘Gap Financing’, for which he says he
has a portfolio of private money sources
potentially available for those needing to
fill the blanks.
Quick Tips, Tools &
Strategies for Maximizing
Your Efforts
7 Insights from the Northern
California Private Money Lender…
• Facebook and LinkedIn are both ‘must-
haves’ for branding today
• Attend local Meet Up groups for con-
necting with investors and private money
partners
• Real estate is a “Contact Sport”, requir-
ing face-to-face interaction to build the
‘know you, like you, trust you factor’, and
facilitate real deal making
• Work with a local lender who can help
achieve “Realistic pricing, faster closings,
and on time closings.”
PAGE A11 • 2014
The team at Pacific Private Money.
• For private lenders, staying local pro-
vides efficiency in lending, can reduce
risk, and helps build their communities
• Upgrade your website every couple of
years to stay on top of trends
• Despite lunar leaps in technology,
computers can still be best leveraged for
creating Credibility Packages and making
presentations to attract private money.
The company uses two websites –
PacificPrivateMoney.com for its borrower
clients, and PacificPrivateInvestments.
com for its investor and lender clients.
The recently re-launched investor site
sports a new, very web 2.0 website
re-design.
So what top tips did Hanf have to offer
on navigating the design process?
“Elance (which recently merged with
even larger outsourcing platform, oDesk)
offers very skilled freelance designers
from all over the world, with fees of 10%
or lower than those of many stateside
agencies, but who can provide equally
great work.” However, the California
lender did note that offshore designers
typically need direction on copy editing.
This can also be outsourced.
Want more?
In our interview Mark Hanf leaked
some details from his new upcoming
book, The Insider’s Guide to Attracting
Private Money, available now via www.
AttractingPrivateMoney.com
Hanf’s guide will include a detailed
411 on how to put together a comprehen-
sive Credibility Package to score attrac-
tive private money and fresh capital. v
- Article by Tim Houghten
reWEALTHmag.com