Hard money or FHA for bad credit investors

[Alissa Warren]

Hi BP fam!

Im just starting out as a REI and i wanted to know if you have bad credit is going to hard money/ private lender route to purchase property ideal ? Ive been looking into fixer uppers in NY/NJ that can be rented out after rehab but of course funding is a problem. Any advice feel free

[Cameron Norfleet]

Hard money lenders put less weight on your credit score but most of them will do a credit check. Two things I'd suggest: 

1) Continue to look for great deals, you might just find one that is too good for a lender to pass on. 

2) Fix your credit. Although hard money lenders put less weight on your credit score and more weight on the strength of the deal, they do care about your level of financial responsibility. So it's best to have as good of a credit score as possible.

Plus, if you ever had to refinance out of a hard money loan, having a decent credit score certainly helps.