I realize traditional lending institutions do not want to get involved until the property has been purchased and a full title report has been done.

Can anyone recommend a financial institution that they had a good experience with?

@Jay RaughtAccessing quality notes in Canada is a little more difficult {but not impossible} - unless you are buying private notes through your own network or a broker - simply due to the relative size of the real estate market(s) {remember, our national population is on par with that of California} and the way the financing industry works (lenders tend to sell off fewer notes and those they do sell are typically to institutional investors).  

There are also other institutional investors out there that are buying up properties because they need to deploy capital, it feels like they are playing a numbers game that if they buy enough that meet certain criteria they will come out ahead on average.  

my point is, do you know about any institution that is borrowing with 5% down ?

One was to use his standard contract and one was to use the industry standard AIA contracts (American Institute of Architects).

Hello,I am currently 23 years old and work at a local credit union as a loan officer and have leads given to me via the institution's website or individuals walking into one of our retail locations, but I have decided to leave this career path and begin working as a mortgage broker for a hard money lender.

Government, institutional, military sectors are largely permanent employers.

These investors, both small high-net-worth investors as well as the institutional mega-funds, are placing money into real estate offerings because they see it as a great alternative to other investment options. 

I currently work at a company called Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), as a marketing coordinator.