Happy New Year. We had an amazing 2015 and I want to thank each and every one of you for your support of Mortgage Vintage and CrowdTrustDeed. We experienced solid growth and results in our Hard Money Loan and Trust Deed Investment businesses’. Our message resonates with borrowers and lenders and we continue to build…
Why is California the place you want to be? Go West Young Man/Woman! Our Fathers, Settlers, Adventurers, Immigrants, acted on this battle cry and moved west to California. We all know about the weather, but why else do residents put up with California’s housing prices, taxes, traffic and liberal slant? Why do we choose…
Can we do a loan in 48 hours? Yes! I received a call at Noon on a Wednesday from Paul. Paul, a Fix and Flipper and Home Builder, had borrowed successfully from Mortgage Vintage before and was now building infill homes. Paul had purchased some land in Orange County and was in the middle…
Fix and Flip or Fix and Rent? Deciding whether to Fix and Flip or Fix and Rent can be a difficult decision. You may be evaluating a purchase or have already put substantial work and money into renovating a property. In either case the question is; sell now, sell in a few years, refinance:…
Fix and Flip or Fix and Rent? The new Windows 10 is about to hit the shelves. Wow. What a sometimes frustrating but exciting ride from DOS. The imminent Windows 10 Version made me think about my own personal and professional resets and upgrades and how everyone should enjoy and contemplate their own life…
What does it mean to trust but verify during the underwriting process? I enjoy meeting people and I prefer to go through life trusting people when we first shake hands. I always like to assume that people I meet are generally good people. However, these days our motto is and has to be “Trust…
How is Hard Money underwriting more art than science? High volume Conventional lenders world use Automated Underwriting (AU) engines to determine if a borrower qualifies for a loan. Fannie Mae’s Desktop Underwriter (DU) and Freddie Mac’s Loan Prospector digest reams of quantitative data and spit out the yes or no decision on a residential…
The “5 C’s of Credit” are the five key elements a borrower should have to obtain credit. These same 5 “C” items are critical for Hard Money loans as well as conventional loans. Successful Mortgage Brokers understand the 5 C’s of Credit and know how to apply their scenario to a conventional or hard…
Best practices we have seen used to acquire or find a Fix and Flip! Here some of the best practices we have seen used to acquire or find a fix and flip. Common wisdom and empirical evidence shows that the profit in a transaction is acquired on the acquisition. Getting a good or discounted…
What Do Trust Deed Investors Really Want
The revelers sang “The 12 Days of Christmas” at our Holiday party the other night and our spirited late night rendition reminded me of the steps we need to take every day to get ready for Christmas Day. As my son reminds me every morning of how many days are left until Christmas, I realize…
Do you know what happens when, during a real estate transaction, a person with money meets a person with experience? The person with the experience ends up with the money and the person with the money ends up with the experience. Ha! Well, we all know experience matters. Whether the person is an NFL Quarterback,…
What is needed to get approved for a hard money loan? As a Real Estate Investor or Mortgage Broker, many times you will need to act quickly to buy or assist someone buy or refinance real estate. When time is of the essence, Hard Money financing is the best and fastest alternative. Below are…
What is needed to get approved for a hard money loan? Real Estate Investors can often find better loan terms by finding a Hard Money Lender through a Google Search or word of mouth. The Internet disintermediates middlemen and, with appropriate search criteria, can allow an investor to find a Direct Lender. These real…
We treat our Lender’s with respect and work hard to ensure their satisfaction. These clients entrust us with their investments and we listen, learn and apply best practices to ensure a profitable and pleasant smart passive income experience. Here are a few recent comments from our Lenders: “We decided that we wanted to diversify and…
What can you learn from a default and subsequent REO? I am more bullish on Trust Deed Investing than ever! I just experienced how equity protection, capital preservation and oversized risk adjusted returns are all very real and alive in the world of Trust Deed Investments. After almost 3 years, one of Mortgage Vintage,…
What is the real need of the Borrower and then solve for that requirement I received a loan scenario recently and the request was for a large new 1st Trust Deed that was paying off an existing Bank First Trust Deed while providing cash-out to the borrower. When I discussed the loan with the…
My wife and I spring cleaned our house over the weekend and felt refreshed and invigorated. Out with the old to make room for the new. I cleaned my closets, storage areas, hard drives and double checked my wallet to eliminate any Credit Cards I don’t use. I embraced Monday with a new fervor to…
10 borrower characteristics that should be considered while underwriting a hard money loan Real Estate provides the collateral for most hard money loans however there are many borrower characteristics that should be considered while underwriting a loan. One of the best ways to avoid fraud and determine if a Hard Money Loan makes sense is…
I recently attended the Real Estate Investor Expo “REIEXPO” in Anaheim, CA and enjoyed meeting many Real Estate Investors while learning about new Investment strategies. What struck me about the meeting was the plethora of methods Real Estate Investors use to make money in Real Estate. Investors with different education, skill sets, risk tolerances, time,…
Having provided close to 200 Private Money Loans to Real Estate Investors and House Flippers gives us a perspective and experience on best practices for House Flippers. We have worked with Flippers who have exceeded their income goals and others that have lost money on the flip. A major part of the flip is to…
Scenarios where buyers, sellers, investors and business owners have chosen Hard Money. While Hard Money rates are certainly higher than conventional loan terms, in many instances the money is less expensive compared to other financing alternatives or the potential loss of potential revenue on a business transaction. Additionally, Hard Money eligibility requirements are less…
What steps should a self-employed borrower take to get a loan? Self-Employment carries many benefits including making decisions, schedule flexibility and not having to work for an incompetent Boss. However there are some disadvantages to generating your own income when it comes to applying for a home loan. Today, under new Federal Regulations, borrowers…
How can a lender be quick to fund but not hurry the transaction? John Wooden, world renowned and legendary UCLA Basketball Coach and Author of the “Pyramid of Success” said “Be Quick but Don’t Hurry” to his players. In other words, do the right things, but learn how to do them quickly. Author Andrew…
Apple’s Siri on the iPhone amazes us all with her witty responses and incredible knowledge. IBM’s Watson Super Computer beat the best brains in the world at Jeopardy and is now tackling real world problems including medical diagnosis and underwriting. What do these machines have in common? They both learn from their mistakes. The promise…
With the Holidays around the corner and increasing tax burdens coming our way, it is a good time for Mortgage Brokers to contemplate ways to earn additional income. A proven method to increase income is to monetize existing leads. Turn a “No” into a “Yes”. Take a Bank (conventional lender) turndown and convert that lead…
How do Hard Money loans give opportunity to borrowers? I attended a breakfast meeting with Terry Donahue, former illustrious UCLA Head Football Coach, and he mentioned “Life is About Opportunity”. Terry currently give’s high school football players opportunity to receive a college football scholarship at his California Showcase. (http://cashowcase.org) In 2012 450 player athletes…
The nature of Fractional Trust Deed Investing creates the opportunity and the benefits of collaborative underwriting Ken Blanchard, the famous Author of the “One Minute Manager” mentioned that his favorite saying is, “None of Us is as Smart as All of Us”. I completely agree with this humble approach to business and believe that…
It’s been five years since Wall Street crashed and the financial crisis broke across the country. Many people lost their homes, their savings or their jobs. Financial plans were shredded. College funds and retirement accounts were drained. The economy has been slowly recovering over the past few years. The stock market is at new highs…
Sandy MacDougall is quoted in the OC Register Article “Homes sellers turn to private deals”…. see attached article on private real estate listings! Download OC Register Article 10-6-13 Home sellers turn to Private Deals