Another Speed Bump: Money

I tried calling the loan officer my RE agent referred me to last Friday, but he was either away from his desk or on the phone (per his assistant). Thus, I was not able to speak to him about the types of services he could offer me. In the meantime, I found a hard money lender located in Dallas via Joe Kelley's blog. I ran some numbers, and using the HML would set me back about $1,500 more compared to my initial calculations using a traditional lender. Of course, the advantage of using the HML is time. I could close in a matter of a week or so with a HML, but would have to wait 3-6 weeks with a traditional lender. Of course, I could use my 401k and/or get a HELOC to fund the majority (if not all) of cash needed for a property, but I would be tying up all of my reserves for just ONE property. And if that one property happened to sit for long time, I would be at a standstill.

So, I called the loan officer again today, and got his voicemail (again). This time, I left him a message to call me back at home. I should get home around 3:30p-4:00p today, so I should have ample time to return his call (if he answers the phone). With this being Valentine's Day, I will be tied-up for the rest of the day.

Note to New Investors: Line up your financing before you look for properties. In my case, I've spent most of my time looking for good deals, but ignored the financing part. Now that the deals are showing up, I have to scramble to get the funds to make an offer.