The Best Hard Money Lenders for 2021

With no proven track record, new investors can struggle to find investment property financing. Even experienced investors sometimes can’t get funding for a growing portfolio. This is where hard money loans can help. We’ve evaluated the five best hard money lenders for funding both new and experienced real estate investors.

Which Hard Money Lender Is Right for You?

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LendingHome: Overall Best Hard Money Lender

*Based on an average of multiple review sites

LendingHome is our best overall hard money lender for fix-and-flip and rehab properties. Typical interest rates can be up to 12%, although prime borrowers can get rates closer to 6.5%, making LendingHome the best hard money lender for the lowest rates. It also offers single-asset rental loans with rates as low as 4.95% and plans to add multi-asset loans in the future.

LendingHome Costs

Experienced investors with five or more flips within 24 months get customized points and a dedicated, experienced manager. New investors can get points as low as 1.5% and closing costs as low as $1,999.

LendingHome Terms

LendingHome pricing and terms are influenced by the investor’s experience, FICO score, and the property. Experienced investors with five or more flips in the last 24 months typically get the best hard money loan rates and terms and can close in as little as five days. New investors with fewer than five flips within the last two years can close in 15 days.

LendingHome Borrower Qualifications

LendingHome Customer Experience

LendingHome is known for fair rates, no personal income verification requirements, and a fast, streamlined closing. Investors like LendingHome’s easy-to-use online portal and their one-time borrower qualification process that makes it easy to fund additional properties.

Lima One Capital: Best for Most Diverse Loan Products

*Based on average of multiple review sites

Lima One Capital is our best choice hard money lender for its diversity of loan products for both new and experienced investors. It has four different fix-and-flip loan products, three rental property loan types, and offers multifamily and new construction hard money loans.

Lima One Capital Costs

Lima One Capital Terms

Lima One Capital borrowers can receive funding approval within 15 days. Its fix-and-flip loans are good for inexperienced investors. However, investors need to have completed a minimum of five flips within the past 36 months to qualify for bridge loans.

Lima One Borrower Qualifications

Although Lima One Capital requires borrowers to have a minimum FICO score of 660, it will fund investors with lower scores if they have a partner with solid credit. The basic fix-and-flip loan product doesn’t require prior experience. The BridgePlus, Heavy Rehab, and Cash-out loans require investors to have a minimum of five exits within the last three years.

Lima One Capital Customer Experience

Lima One Capital is one of the highest-ranked hard money lenders for customer satisfaction. Borrowers reported Lima One Capital as having outstanding loan service, low rates, and a fast closing turnaround. They also liked having one dedicated point of contact throughout the loan process.

Visio Lending: Best for Financing Rent-ready Properties

*Based on average of multiple review sites

Visio Lending cuts out the middlemen to offer you the best rates, terms, and a smoother loan experience. Visio Lending doesn’t offer rehab or fix-and-flip loans, so it’s the best hard money choice for refinancing or growing a rental portfolio. It finances loans for both new and experienced investors.

Visio Lending Costs

Visio Lending Terms

Visio Lending offers single-rental loans, blanket loans for multiple properties, and bridge loans. Its long-term products are suitable for investors wanting to build wealth, and its bridge loans are good for investors needing equity to purchase or renovate properties quickly. It also offers portfolio lending for vacation and short-term rental properties.

Visio Lending Qualifications

Although Visio Lending requires higher credit scores than its competitors, it will consider borrowers with lower FICOs. It evaluates the property by the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) and the debt service coverage ratio (DSCR).

Visio Lending Customer Experience

Customers especially liked the personal attention and detail their loan officer gave to them. They also reported that projects funded quickly, and the process went smoothly even when funding multiple loans simultaneously.

RCN Capital: Best for Investors With Short-term Experience

*Based on average of multiple review sites

RCN Capital offers short-term bridge loans, after repair value (ARV) loans, a buy-to-rent program, and long-term rental loans. RCN Capital is the best hard money lender for less experienced investors since it only requires borrowers to have a minimum of two previous flips or two rental properties within three years.

RCN Capital Costs

The lender doesn’t charge a prepayment penalty but does charge a loan termination fee of 1% to borrowers who pay off the loan after nine months. Borrowers have the convenience of working with the same loan officer from application through closing. Underwriting and loan approval are done in-house, giving RCN Capital a local bank feel though they lend in 45 states.

RCN Capital Terms

RCN Capital hard money loans have a typical loan term of 12 to 18 months. Its Buy-to-Rent program has a two-year term and allows a one-year extension. There are no prepayment penalties on the fix-and-flip loan program. The maximum hard money loan amount is $2.5 million, and RCN Capital lends up to $5 million in its long-term rental program.

RCN Capital Qualifications

RCN Capital considers credit scores, investor experience, and available collateral when determining loans. RCN Capital hard money loans are unique in that they have three qualifying experience levels instead of just two. Intermediate investors with three to 10 completed projects in 36 months can qualify for better rates and terms than new investors with fewer than three completed deals.

RCN Capital Customer Experience

RCN Capital borrowers said they loved the fast turnaround time to closing and raved about working with the same loan officer from the application process through closing the loan.

CoreVest: Best Hard Money Lender for Larger Projects

*Based on average of multiple review sites

While CoreVest is a direct private money lender and not specifically a hard money lender, we included them as our top pick for large residential portfolios and investment property loans up to $250 million. It offers loans for residential rental portfolios, build-to-rent, and multifamily properties, and credit lines for fix-and-flip and rental aggregation. Once buyers get underwriting approval, the loan can close in as soon as 24 hours.

CoreVest Costs

CoreVest offers competitive rates on its short-term and long-term loan products starting at 6%, depending on the project and the investor’s experience. Most investors will get a rate between 6% and 9.95%, averaging around 7.99%.

CoreVest Terms

CoreVest offers several loans, including credit lines, bridge loans, portfolio loans, and single-asset permanent loans. The terms offered for its credit lines and bridge loans are 18 to 24 months. The portfolio loans have five-, seven-, and 10-year terms and the single-rental loans have 30-year terms.

CoreVest Qualifications

CoreVest has a minimum FICO score of 620, but the lender underwrites based on the deal. Its loans are best for experienced investors. Borrowers will need to provide proof of funds for a minimum 20% down payment. CoreVest offers fix-and-flip loans with terms from one to two years in either a credit line or a bridge loan.

CoreVest Customer Experience

CoreVest prides itself in providing experienced loan professionals, competitive rates, and loans up to $250 million with no hassle and no hidden fees.

Important Information for New Investors

If you’re borrowing a hard money loan, it is critical you run an investment property cash flow projection to make sure the rental income or fix-and-flip profits cover all costs, including the costs of the hard money loan. Focus on positive cash flow and calculate all projected income and expenses.

If you’re new to investing in real estate, check out our comprehensive Real Estate Investing Ultimate Guide, which includes a free downloadable business planning template and cash flow forecasting example.

How We Determined the Best Hard Money Lenders

When evaluating the best hard money lenders, we considered hard money loan rates, terms, borrower qualifications, whether they work with new real estate investors, and funding speed. While most traditional lenders offer better rates, they also have higher qualification requirements and slower funding speeds.

The best hard money lender criteria we used includes:

• Interest rates: We looked for hard money loans that offered low competitive rates for new and experienced investors.
• Loan fees: Our top picks generally had lender fees not to exceed 3%.
• Loan terms: The top five hard money lenders in 2021 offered loan terms for one or two years on short-term funding and up to 30 years on rental property loans.
• Borrower qualifications: We shopped for little-to-no hassle qualifiers like low credit scores and not much paperwork or hoops to jump through.
• Funding time: The amount of time to close on loans ranged from five days to three weeks.
• Investor experience: All of the hard money lenders on our list accept minimal experience for some of their loan products and also work with experienced investors.
• Customer reviews: We scoured the web to find consumer choice for the best hard money lenders.

Bottom Line

Hard money loans offer short-term financing solutions for real estate investors who typically can’t get funding for their real estate investing projects through traditional lenders. We evaluated the five best hard money lenders in 2021. These hard money lenders work with both new and experienced real estate investors and provide financing from single residential investment properties through large commercial projects and burgeoning real estate portfolios.