Hi folks -I'm new to BP and real estate (but very familiar with finance and comfortable with early-stage risk in general - I come from the tech venture world).I'm considering making a small hybrid equity investment / loan to a developer building homes.

We are buying the building itself, furnishings etc not transferring their Llc.

this is a toughie. hard money specifically is equity-driven, meaning they'll likely want 40%+ down to even entertain the deal. additionally, land without improvements is often very inexpensive (relative to land with improvements), usually pushing below a threshold which makes sense for a hard money lender. if you're not intending to build right away, then i think you'll have the best luck with private money instead of hard money. usually higher leverages than hard money, and more negotiable terms.if you are intending to build on it pretty right away, a ground-up construction loan could work, but those will typically require some ground-up construction experience (on title on other ground-up deals), or an extensive portfolio of heavy rehabs/ rentals/ strong liquidity. those will give you acquisition monies (to buy the land) and build monies (to build the improvements).

Rather than assuming that 30 vague anecdotes translate to toxicity, you’d be better served by asking questions and seeking clarification.For those actually involved in the Gator Lending community, we’re talking about people dedicated to building real estate careers, many of them husband-and-wife teams who are laser-focused on staying out of the "rat race."

I figure I'll get mayhe 250k from the refi based on 5plex noi and comparables.I'd like to take a loan for the other 350k for example to meet the 10% down payment on a low income building hud loan.Is there an easier way to get into A higher unit commercial building?

Greger   In addition to the great advice above, most lenders will require proof of funds to start the project, as you'll have to "front" the rehab funds to get started, then the property will be inspected and the rehab funds released from the lender according to a draw schedule.  

I started out with a smaller deal to reduce the overall risk just in case since I still wasn't 100% trusting.

To what extent would you entrust them towards handling duties such asCommunity and Forum building Online event hosting Social Media Handling Deal Finding and Analysis Appointment Setting Remote sales(real estate course and events)Customer Support

If you plan to demo/build, then make a cash offer for the land value minus the demo.  

I'm located in Melbourne and do some investing in Palm Bay, are you building spec homes?