Because borrowers pay for appraisals, not lenders, it's not skin off of Chase's back to get a bunch of people excited about refinancing to drop mortgage insurance. - Some folks, randomly, it'll turn out that the appraisal comes in high enough to drop mortgage insurance.

If I have a small amount of money to invest in a deal that I am syndicating with other parties, can I take a hard money loan to up my skin in the deal and pay the loan right back with my acquisition fee that I take for operating the deal?

That's a vague plan, and it looks bad for 2 reasons. 1) It's too close to what a realtor actually does, and 2) It just sounds more greedy to say "split the profits" when you have no skin in the game.If you have expertise in foreclosures, and want to make a legit business helping people get out of those predicaments, a coaching or consulting role would probably be a much better option.

@John Clendenon, as you can see, there are many, many ways to skin this cat.  

I asked specifically about multi-family units, be he said it could also be used for SFH.However, I introduced this to my agent and she had some push back:"As far as the form is concerned, I do not think a seller or attorney would go for it - there's nothing legally binding in addition to no "skin in the game" for the buyer.

Another thing I learned is when a tenant asks for an upgrade, I always make them put some skin in the game. 

You do want at least 10% in my opinion for the renter to have enough skin in the game not to walk away.

Many people will lend 100% of reno costs if you've got skin into the acquisition.  

Wholesaling is a great strategy to master because you have very little skin in the game.  

Almost all lenders I know, including myself, would not lend to a 1st time investor with no skin in the game.