New Investor / Private Lender

[Rob Hakes]

Hello BP! I am a long time lurker, first time poster from the Salt Lake City, UT area.

I have been studying many different aspects of real estate investing and am wanting to get started on the lending side.  I was hoping to get some input on the basics of being a private lender.  Does anybody have any input for a regular dude that wants to put his money to work?  I am wondering

-who are the best players to network with to find good projects? Loan/mortgage brokers/?

- what laws do i need to worry about as a PML?  do i need to worry about usury laws?

- What are some common pitfalls that a lender finds themselves in?

-What are the market rates that Lenders charge for a short term deal?

I only have a little bit to probably do one job or a portion of one job at a time, so i don't want to lose on my first deal.  I would be looking at primarily doing short term deals (fix and flips)

Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks