It makes sure the applicant has skin in the game before they waste yours and their time.

Effectively you won't have any skin in the game and banks don't like that.  

Private lending may sound risky on the surface, but it's actually a very safe, secure position.

I've asked a few investors in my area that have some skin in the game and this is what they have shared with me.

Hey I can only answer these how we do it and I realize that there is more than 1 way to skin a cat.1) The Purchase Price is locked in and does not change.  

The learning accelerates so quickly once you are in the trenches with skin in the game.You could try working for a property manager for a way to earn a basic hourly wage and learn as you go.

In Las Vegas, 30k isn't going to scratch the surface of a deal either, you'd need to secure at least a conventional loan for the balance and you're still probably only at maybe $150k in purchasing power (with two loans to pay now).

There are many ways to skin the cat, and there a few ways to burn it to a crisp.

That gives you time to build a larger downpayment and then when you go to the bank, it shows you have been managing the property, you have skin in the game and you are a good risk. 

Usually hard money lenders and private money lenders want to see experience and some skin in the game.