Where to find a private lender for a primary residence?

[Katryna Wood]

Hi all! I am struggling to find someone to fund a primary residence. It would be for $120k plus closing costs for a year or two until we could refinance. I have been told to check this website, but I haven't found anything yet. 

I have looked into hard money loans but they are all for investors. I just want to find anything that is no or low down payment. The loan would be secured by the property. I don't even mind paying ridiculous interest rates as I understand this is a big ask. I just don't know where to find a private lender as anything I have googled looks to be for businesses or a scam. 

Please, anyone, point me in the right direction. Thanks! 

[Jay Hurst]

Quote from @Katryna Wood:

Thanks! It does help. 

My husbands aunt is selling it to us at a discount but is unable to do any sort of financing as she needs to sell it and get the funds. It is in livable condition but needs cosmetic repairs.

We are currently paying $1600 on a $220k mortgage and we want to sell and move to this home, but we would only net about $7-10k on the sale of our home. 

The only reason we don't qualify for traditional lending is because I took some time off to help my terminally ill father, and my husband has been in a commission-based role for less than a year (the lender said you need 2 years of history for that). This is why we are seeking a private lender as we would refinance after 1-2 years once we have proof of steady job history.

 The reason it is harder to get a mortgage on a primary home vs investment property is a federal law called "ability to repay" or ATR.  A lender is required to establish the ATR of a borrower when it will be their primary residence. This came out of the fall out of the subprime era and eventually crash. A lot of those loans were made to people who never had a chance to actually pay back the loan and that resulted in a lot of people losing their homes. If you are buying an investment property, it is a business, and if you by something you cannot afford the thought is that is on you. 

The ATR does not have to be the same on every deal. There are many ways to look at it.  You mentioned you took time off, but are you back at a W-2 job yet?