Legitamacy of a Private Lender

[Julien Anaya]

I'm a new Realtor and also new to the investing side of real estate, but I've been studying it for over a year. I'm ready to purchase my first flip. I have a great contractor, good relationships with wholesalers, access to MLS, and about $20k cash to put down. I have a private lender who is asking me for DL and bank statents and is offering 5% interest rate. I understand that's pretty typical, however I cannot find any information about him and his company online. I know he's probably just an individual, but how do I know when I'm working with a legit lender? Are there any "fake" lenders trying to steal information? Anything else I should worry about? Thanks!

[Tim Johnson]

I would bet 95% chance of this being a scam.  5% is way way way to cheap for a private lender unless its a close family friend or something like that.  If he was offering like 7-9% then I would follow up more, but 5% is way to cheap unless he is a totally idiot.