Quote from @Michael Challenger: I have no qualms with hard money lending, but I need to learn more about the process and structure to these for typical deals so that I am more comfortable and in a position to reduce my personal risk and risk to investors as much as possible.

Pays only 8.5% but is the most conservative note fund we have ever come across as they only do performing notes that are in first lien position and only on homes that have a mortgage under $600 and people have at least 50% equity in their homes already.

If you used a loan to rehab your property and find yourself in a difficult position, doing a straight refi (just paying off the old mortgage) will be easier than trying to pay off the original loan and take additional cash out.

However, appreciation will put more dollars in your pocket over the long run.The best solution is to find a property with positive cash flow in an appreciating market.

However, one of the other REITs I invested in quadrupled in price, and as a whole I’m $150,000 positive.  

On the positive, your losses are light. 

Maybe they've been burned by landlords in the past and are being very careful.You can legally reject them based on personality, facial tattoos, body odor, or other factors, but you better make sure you can prove that it wasn't based on any protected class like race, religion, familial status, etc.

My clients love it here because of the positive cash flowing deals and lots of appreciation potential.

With your background in the Air Force, MBA, and construction, you're in a great position to launch a real estate venture.

MOST INVESTORS don't understand this and are fortunate to not get stuck in a position similar to the ones we faced.People don't seem to comprehend just how much "luck" has to do with success.