Hard Money Lender Wannabe

[Ben Reese]

I'm an early retiree from the airline business, investing my retirement assets in a self directed IRA. To date I have written 3 private loans at good LTVs and am very pleased with the results. I would like to get more involved in Hard/Pvt money lending, with the ultimate goal of building a business of HM lending by pooling funds with other like minded retirees/investors. Beyond the obvious risks (like default) can any of you tell me what the pitfalls in such a business might be? Because I can travel inexpensively I can easily look at deals nationwide. Which states are best avoided? What licensing requirements (if any) are there? Any information on the steps I need to go through to set this up would be greatly appreciated.