When is a good time to start looking at portfolio lending?

[Ingrid Mignott]

Portfolio lenders provide mortgages mainly to investors looking for either quick cash loans, short term, or long term mortgages for multiple rental properties. They do not sell their loans. As they do not sell their loans, they carry the risk and charge premium fees up to 5%. Should you wait till you cannot get a conventional loan to go this route, or should you look at this at an earlier point? What are the benefits of a portfolio loan?