Capital or Deals: Which first for a new syndicator?

[Michael Orndoff]

Just curious how you started your syndication journey, did you find the perfect deal and sponsor then the capital, or did you go on the hunt for capital and soft commits then find active syndications to put those funds in?

Did you do something completely different?

Thank you in advance for your time and response

[Evan Polaski]

@Michael Orndoff, the simple answer is capital first then deal.  

The detailed answer is: you are teeing up interest and building your POTENTIAL investor network before finding a deal, but generally most LPs will not sign a sub doc or fund any money until you have the deal identified.

The flip side is no brokers/sellers will award you a deal as a new sponsor, until you have the capital raised.  Or more accurately, they won't award you any great deals.  You will be getting the deals that most other established groups have passed on.