Although there are some national hard money and private capital lending companies, there are definite benefits to choosing a local, small-business hard money or private capital lender who can meet with you in person rather than dealing with you exclusively via phone or email. Local lenders typically fund projects in a small regional area so that they can visit properties for themselves and meet with borrowers face to face. These lenders are much more likely to treat borrowers as partners rather than just a loan number. They need to maintain their reputation around town, same as any borrower. In addition to the more personal touch, here are four other benefits to working with a local Colorado hard money lender:

1. Speed. Local lenders typically live in the area where they fund projects so that they can conduct onsite visits quickly and easily (often with 24 hours of receiving the loan request). National lenders often have to send out third-party companies to inspect properties, which can add days or even a week to the underwriting process.
2. Knowledge. A local lender’s biggest asset is perhaps their extensive knowledge of a particular area. Having watched the long-term fluctuations in their local market, they have more insight into what makes for a good investment in their area and what buyers really want in an investment property.
3. Connections. Local lenders can also be good sources for referrals for contractors, inspectors, appraisers and other contacts to help your project realize its potential. As your lender, they have a vested interest in seeing that your project succeeds, and they know from past projects who will get the work done right the first time.
4. Support. One of the attractions of hard money lending is that it favors a borrower’s character over their credit score. And local lenders take this a step further by meeting with their borrowers face to face allowing the borrower to deal directly with the person making the decision to fund their loan, rather than trying to communicate their passion for their property through a phone line or computer screen.

The main thing to remember about local lenders is that they too are local small business owners. They know what it’s like to be in the borrower’s shoes and they are happy to share their knowledge and connections with their borrowers—letting them know when a deal is good or when it’s best to just walk away—because they care and want to see them succeed.

Montegra is a local private capital lender that specializes in funding loans in the Denver-metro and Colorado front range area with more than 47 years of private capital and hard money lending experience. If you have questions about commercial real estate investment in this area or our myriad private capital loan programs, contact us at 303-377-4181.