After finding a  suitable borrower to place your money with, but before the money trades hands, be sure to underwrite the deal thoroughly.

If you can househack something like a 2-4 unit your down payment money might go further and allow you to borrow more since often times lenders will factor in some or all of the other rent as income in the DTI calculations.

How well do you know your potential borrower and their creditworthiness?

If you have a stock portfolio and or retirement accounts, most brokerages will allow you to borrow up to 40% of the portfolio's market value. 

The government can borrow money from the central bank to buy goods and services, and then repay the debt by printing more money.

(Borrowers, lenders, and investors may use Libor as a reference rate.)

No problem right.So what do you do when you find out the borrower is in prison and the 17 year old daughter who is a junior in high school is living in the property and she is trying to find a place to live with a friend and needs an extra 3 weeks.

Private lenders allow for much more exposure to a borrower than traditional banks do. 

For borrowers with low or mid-range credit scores, what are some strategies for securing hard money loans?

This is the most complicated piece because you are essentially the mortgage originator (which might run into licensing concerns depending on how many times you do this and your state), and you need to make sure the person who is buying is a good borrower.3) close with a title company or lawyer (state dependent) who knows how to deal with this type of transaction4) set up an account with a servicer to collect the money from the borrower (not required, but highly recommended from note buyers)5) collect payments