Hard Money Loans in California
You found the deal, and the seller won't wait while a bank reads two years of tax returns. A hard money loan lends on the property and your plan to pay it off, so it can move on the seller's clock. We compare hard money lenders across a network of 100+ wholesale lenders, on loans up to $20 million. Call before you sign.
- ✓ NMLS #1277693
- ✓ Licensed in California
- ✓ Direct broker access
What Is a Hard Money Loan?
You have a property you need to buy or fix, and a bank wants tax returns and weeks of paperwork before it will say yes. A hard money loan is a short term loan made mostly on the value of the property, not on your income. The lender looks at what the property is worth, what you plan to do with it, and how you will pay the loan back. Advanced Funding Solutions is a mortgage brokerage, so we do not lend our own money. We compare hard money and bridge loans across our network of 100+ wholesale lenders and private lenders, then bring you the one that fits your deal.
Who Hard Money Is For
Most borrowers who call us about hard money are investors with a clock running. A fix and flip fits, and so does buying your next property before the last one sells. A 1031 exchange fits too, since the tax rules give you a fixed window to buy the replacement property. So does a property a bank will not touch yet, because it needs work or has no tenant. Most lenders in this space lend on investment property, not the home you live in.
How a Hard Money Loan Works
If you have only ever had a regular mortgage, the math here runs the other way around. The lender starts with the property's value and lends a share of it, called the loan to value, or LTV. Many of our lenders go up to 80% LTV, on loans as large as $20 million. Most loans last 12 to 36 months and are interest only, so your payment covers interest and the balance stays put until you pay it off. If you are renovating, some lenders also fund part of the repairs and release that money in stages as the work gets done.
What You Need to Qualify
You will not have to prove your income the way a bank asks you to, but the lender still wants to see a real plan. Expect to show the purchase contract or the property details, a budget for any work, and bank statements with your down payment and closing money. The lender also checks your credit, and a stronger history can get you better terms. Some lenders like to see that you have finished a project like this before.
How You Pay It Off
You need to know how this loan ends before you take it. You pay it off one of two ways: you sell the property, or you refinance into a long term loan once the work is done. Many investors refinance a finished rental into a DSCR loan, which qualifies on the property's rent instead of your income. If you run past the term, many lenders offer an extension for a fee. Settle the plan before closing, not after.
What It Costs
You pay more for speed and flexibility, and you should know that going in. Hard money carries a higher rate than a normal mortgage, plus points, which are upfront fees figured as a percent of the loan. We do not publish a rate, because it moves with your credit, the LTV, the property and your plan. What we do is put your deal in front of several lenders and show you each offer side by side, in writing. Talk to us about your deal and you will see real numbers before you pick a lender.
Hard Money vs a Conventional Mortgage
If you are torn between the two, the real question is time and paperwork. A conventional mortgage reads your tax returns, your pay stubs, and your debt to income ratio (DTI), the share of your monthly income that goes to debt payments. It takes longer, but it costs far less and can run for 30 years. Hard money skips most of that and lends on the property. That is why it can close on a deadline, and why it costs more.
When Hard Money Is the Wrong Answer
If you are not in a hurry and your income is easy to prove, do not take a hard money loan. A conventional mortgage will almost always cost you less, and so will a bank statement loan if you work for yourself. The same goes for a home you plan to live in for years. Hard money is a tool for a deadline or a property a bank will not touch yet. If your deal is neither, we will tell you.
Buying a large property you plan to keep? A jumbo loan may be the long term loan that pays off the bridge. Tell us about your deal and we will come back with the lenders most likely to fund it, before you apply anywhere.
When a deal has a deadline and a bank's process won't fit, qualifying on the property's value and the plan to pay it off is the faster path. We take hard money and bridge loans to multiple private lenders to find one that fits the loan size, the LTV, and the work you plan to do.
What a Hard Money Loan Gets You
Loans Up to $20 Million
If your deal is bigger than most hard money lenders will touch, you still have options. We work with lenders who write small fix and flip loans and lenders who write large ones, up to $20 million. That range is the reason a brokerage with 100+ lenders helps on a big purchase.
Built for a Deadline
If a seller, an auction or a 1031 exchange has put a date on your purchase, a bank's timeline may not reach it. Hard money lenders skip most of the income paperwork, so what is left is the property, title and escrow. Getting your documents in early is the biggest thing you control.
Qualify on the Property
If your tax return makes you look smaller than you are, it matters far less here. The lender mainly weighs what the property is worth, what it will be worth after the work, and how you plan to pay the loan off. Some lenders still look at income, just much less than a bank does.
Up to 80% LTV
If you want to keep more of your own cash free, LTV is the number to watch. Many of our lenders will lend up to 80% of the property's value. Where you land comes down to the property type, the work planned, your credit and your track record.
Money for the Repairs
If the property needs work before it can sell or rent, some lenders will fund part of the repair budget too. They pay it out in stages as each phase gets done and checked. Tell us your budget up front and we look for lenders who will cover it.
Buy Before You Sell
If you need the next property before the last one sells, a bridge loan covers the gap. It is the same kind of short term loan, and it gets paid off when the old property closes. We map the payoff with you before you sign anything.
Buy in Your LLC or Trust
If you invest through an LLC, you usually do not have to take title in your own name. Many hard money lenders will lend to an LLC or a trust. Have your operating agreement ready, because the lender will ask for it.
Hard Money Loan Terms
Who Uses Hard Money Loans
Contact Advanced Funding Solutions to discuss whether this program may be a fit for your situation. Eligibility, loan amounts, and terms are determined after a complete application and underwriting review.
Get a Quote →- Investors buying a property on a tight deadline
- Fix and flip investors
- Buyers who need the next property before the last one sells
- 1031 exchange investors working against the tax deadline
- Investors buying a property a bank will not lend on yet
- Investors who hold property in an LLC
How to Get a Hard Money Loan
Tell us about the deal
Tell us the property, the price, the work you plan and how you will pay the loan off. That payoff plan is what lenders care about most, so we start there.
We line up the lenders
We put your deal in front of the hard money lenders who fit its size, property type and timeline. You see what each one offers before you apply anywhere.
Send the paperwork
Expect the purchase contract, your repair budget, and bank statements that show your down payment and closing money. If you buy in an LLC, add the operating agreement.
Valuation, approval and closing
The lender values the property, reviews everything and sends you final terms in writing. Title and escrow wrap it up, and the faster your documents come back, the faster you close.
Hard Money Loan Questions
How does Advanced Funding Solutions work with hard money borrowers?
How much does a hard money loan cost?
How fast can a hard money loan close?
What is the maximum loan to value?
Do I need good credit for a hard money loan?
Can a hard money loan be used as a bridge?
Can I refinance a hard money loan into a long term loan?
What happens if I can't pay the loan off before the term ends?
What is the difference between a hard money loan and a bridge loan?
Can I use a hard money loan for ground up construction in California?
Do you have examples of hard money loans you've arranged?
Related Loan Options
Our Approach
Here is what actually happens after you tell us what you are buying.
One application, more than 100 lenders
You fill out one form. We take it to the lenders whose guidelines actually fit your situation and bring back what each of them said. You are not starting over at every door.
You see the options side by side
When more than one loan could work for you, we show you both and explain the trade-off in plain language. Conventional against jumbo, bank statements against tax returns. You pick, not us.
Everything in writing before you commit
Your rate, fee and loan disclosures come to you in writing during the application, because state and federal law requires it. Anything we discuss before that is an estimate and we will tell you so.
Subject to approval
All loans are subject to credit, income, asset, property, and underwriting approval. A pre-qualification is not a commitment to lend, and your final terms are set after a complete application and lender review.
Recently Funded Deals
You probably want to see a real one before you call. This is a loan we arranged through one of our lenders, with the borrower's name and the address left out.
- 70% LTV
- Funded 7 days after the lender had every document
- This lender did not require an appraisal
- No third party reports required
- Investor buying and fixing the property before a long term loan
These numbers belong to one finished loan. Yours will come out different, because the lender, the property and how quickly title and escrow move all change the result. See all funded deals.
Hard Money Loan Limits at a Glance
You are looking at the outer limits across our lenders, not a quote. The lender you choose puts your actual rate, points and terms in writing when you apply.
Hard Money Loans by City in Southern California
Los Angeles County
Ventura County
Program Disclosures
Advanced Funding Solutions is a mortgage brokerage (NMLS #1277693). Loan programs described on this page are offered through a network of wholesale lenders. Program availability, loan amounts, interest rates, points, fees, and underwriting guidelines are set by each funding lender and may change without notice. Not all borrowers will qualify for every program.
Any rates, costs, or timelines referenced on this page are illustrative only and are not a quote, rate lock, or commitment to lend. Actual rates and costs depend on the loan program, lender, credit profile, property type, occupancy, loan-to-value, and other factors, and are disclosed in writing during the formal application process as required by state and federal law.
All loans are subject to credit, income, asset, property, and underwriting approval. Pre-qualification is not a commitment to lend. State availability of specific programs varies; contact Advanced Funding Solutions to confirm whether a program is offered in your state. Equal Housing Opportunity.
Have a hard money deal on a deadline?
Tell us the property, the price and how you plan to pay it off. We'll bring back the lenders most likely to fund it, before you apply anywhere. Advanced Funding Solutions, NMLS #1277693. All loans are subject to credit, income, asset, property, and underwriting approval.