After my clients would select a loan program I would tell them who we were dealing with, "this loan is through Lincoln Services who will be buying you/or funding your loan" or whom ever or, I'd tell them it's our portfolio loan made by us/me.You may have to pay some fees up front in a commercial loan, get a break down of each fee and where the money goes and who performs the services required.Under the SAFE Act, a broker may not charge a fee for themselves, but they can collect appraisal, credit report or other third party charges necessary to process the loan.This goes to show that borrowers need to do their due diligence on lenders as much as lenders check out a borrower, especially if you're not walking into a bank.Sorry to hear your situation, good luck with the matter

Question his references or your sources to see if he has ever done this with anyone else.

We would love to grow our own real estate investing company that we could use as our main source of income once my husband finishes his active duty military service.

The loan documents they fill out for the government guaranteed loans asks they the source of the money for the down payment.

Any sources or textbk that you guys recommend?

I believe (loan brokers help me out) this is flagged up front (or early) in DU entry as a 'red flag'.(1) Source: https://www.fanniemae.com/content/guide/sel073013.pdf

The site that Robert mentioned (creditkarma.com) is a great source of info on how credit scores work and how to improve them.

I started in a business program after retiring from the military.

Louis County PHA program.

I'm quasi-familiar with these programs.