Clay Sparkman It is our opinion and the opinion of many others that banks, though they’ve bounced back in certain areas, have not picked up the slack when it comes to funding rehab, construction, and development loans. I have been on about this before, so I won’t go into great detail here. I think that […]
Commercial loans
Loan sits on desk: how the heck do I place it?
Thursday, April 18th, 2013Clay Sparkman If you are having trouble finding the ever elusive lenders that you need for your particular client transactions and projects, a web based tool known as Lendicom.com may be of interest to you. The site is geared toward commercial lending (including construction, project, and development loans), and allows borrowers and brokers to sign […]
What the media is saying about private money markets
Thursday, March 14th, 2013S. Clay Sparkman I spend plenty of time cruising the web for interesting articles that are relevant to the current state of hard money lending, brokering, and borrowing. I don’t always agree with everything I find, but it is useful to evaluate varying points of view, and I certainly wouldn’t pass along any article that […]
Good news for real estate markets: could this be the actual turn around we've been waiting for?
Monday, November 12th, 2012Clay Sparkman During the past five years we’ve–most of us who make our money in the real estate market (in one way or another)–had a pretty rough time. Certainly, few of us ever anticipated that we were in for a slump of five+ years. And, of course, there have been the false-starts along the way […]
FFS has new source of private money funds nationwide
Thursday, April 12th, 2012I am pleased to announce that we now have a new source of funds nationwide, and for larger loans than what we have typically been able to do. The basic parameters are as follows: ELIGIBLE LOCATIONS Anywhere in the United States ELIGIBLE PROPERTIES Income producing commercial real estate properties including multifamily, but no construction TRANSACTION […]
Small Is Beautiful
Friday, February 10th, 2012Clay Sparkman Generally speaking we are quite willing to consider small loans. We realize that we will never get rich doing small loans, but we also remember what got us where we are. The large loans can be quite fickle, coming and going as they please, but the small loans seem to be there when […]
Private Money Loan Simulator
Wednesday, December 14th, 2011Clay Sparkman I firmly believe that the best way to learn about anything complex is by doing. The second best way is by example. If I could provide you with a private money loan simulator I would, but I haven’t figured out how to do that yet (though I assure you, we haven’t given up […]
On the art of handcrafting loans
Thursday, October 20th, 2011Clay Sparkman As I pointed out in a previous mailing, our private money lending programs tend to be fairly rigid with regard to LTV requirements, but quite forgiving with regard to other issues. One of the nice things about private money is that it allows for creative problems solving. I have put many transactions together […]
Our sweet spot … our wheelhouse
Thursday, October 6th, 2011Clay Sparkman There was November, 2007 and then there were the nearly 4 years now that followed. If you are an acting broker in this market it is because you are a survivor. Darwin’s theory—survival of the fittest—would have been more aptly named, survival of the most adaptable. If you are still here, then it […]
Don't Believe Everything You Hear About Private Money
Monday, September 12th, 2011Clay Sparkman This week I’d like to address some myths about private money, and hopefully correct some common misconceptions that seem to exist with regard to private money lending as an alternative mechanism for funding the refinance and acquisition of real estate. Myth: As a broker, I should first try to use conventional bank financing, […]
