I was just hoping there was someone that had personal experience with them.

In my experience, you can absolutely use hard money in bank owned reo auctions...you still don't generally get access and thus need a lender who does need an appraisal in this scenario. 

@Anthony Zotto unless you have a LOT of landlording experience, do NOT buy w/o tenants signing a lease!

Hi all! Happy InvestingWondering if anyone has worked with Total Quality Lending? Talking with one of their reps today, but wanted to also crowd source some info here : ) Thanks!

He has extensive experience with hotels and renovations.

It worked out fine, though each time I got a little less than advertised interest rate (about 9% vs 10%) and I had to send a reminder email to to get my money back, but I did get it back.I ask about others' experience, because I'm still not 100% sure it's not a ponzi. 

out of 100 HML maybe 5 do new builds.. and zero will do loans for someone with no experience so that is going to be the key if you have experience or not.. if not they then like to see an experienced GC on your team. 

Are there other pathways I should consider, based on my goals and experience?

To avoid going through the same poor experience, keep reading.Even if someone gives you a referral here, do NOT make the mistake of assuming that the PMC will meet your expectations, just because they met the expectations of the referral source.In our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.It's often a case of not doing enough research, as they don't know what they don't know!

In my experience cap-x is the rarest of knowledge and actions to most.