Private Money questions...

[Qwesi McCray]

I'm brainstorming different ways to raise capital for my first RE deal and I have questions about private money.

If a private investor, let's say a person at a local REI meetup, agrees to invest in my business how does the process work? I'm sure we'll sign a promissory note, but who writes that up? Also, would he/she check my credit? Would that credit check be considered an inquiry on my report? Will the loan appear on my credit report? What if i'm investing using a LLC? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.