Private lending gets talked about in two unhelpful ways. Either it is presented as a miracle solution that solves everything, or it is treated as something desperate that you should avoid at all costs.

Neither is accurate. A private mortgage is a tool. Used correctly for the right situation, it solves problems nothing else can solve. Used badly, it becomes expensive and hard to get out of.

Here is the honest version.

What a Private Mortgage Is

A private mortgage is financing from a private individual, a group of investors, or a mortgage investment corporation, rather than from a bank or credit union.

The fundamental difference is what the lender cares about. Banks care about your income, your credit score, and your debt ratios. Private lenders care primarily about the property and the equity in it.

That shift changes everything about the process. Approvals are faster because there is less to verify. Requirements are more flexible because the security is the property itself. And terms are shorter, usually one year, because private lending is designed as a bridge rather than a permanent arrangement.

When Private Lending Is the Right Call

You need to close fast. A conventional approval takes weeks. Sometimes you have days. Private lenders can move in that timeframe.

The bank declined you but you have equity. Credit issues, income that cannot be documented conventionally, a recent business change. If the equity is there, private lending often works where a bank will not.

You are bridging between properties. You bought before you sold and need funds to close. This is one of the most common and most sensible uses of private financing.

The property is unconventional. Rural acreage, mixed-use, a property that needs work before a conventional lender will touch it, unusual zoning. Private lenders assess these case by case rather than against a rigid checklist.

You need to solve a time-sensitive problem. Tax arrears, a foreclosure that needs to be stopped, a debt situation that needs restructuring before it damages your credit further.

When It Is Not the Right Call

If a conventional or alternative lender would approve you with a bit more time or documentation, use them. The rate difference is real.

If you have no realistic path back to conventional financing, a private mortgage becomes a treadmill you cannot get off. This is the situation I work hardest to prevent.

If the equity is thin. Private lenders need a meaningful equity cushion, and if it is not there, the file usually does not work anyway.

If you are using it to avoid dealing with an underlying problem rather than to solve one.

What It Costs

I would rather you hear this clearly from me than discover it at the lawyer's office.

Rates on private mortgages are meaningfully higher than conventional. First mortgages typically run in the high single digits, second mortgages higher again, and the exact rate depends on the loan-to-value ratio and the specifics of the file.

There is a lender fee, usually a percentage of the loan amount, deducted from the advance. There is a broker fee, which I disclose in writing before you commit to anything. There are legal fees, and appraisal costs.

Terms are typically one year, sometimes two, with interest-only payments in many cases.

I put all of these numbers in front of clients before they decide anything. No surprises, ever.

The Exit Strategy

This is the part of private lending that most brokers skip and that I refuse to.

Every private mortgage I arrange includes a written plan for getting you out of it. Not a vague intention. An actual plan with steps and a timeline.

That plan might involve rebuilding credit to a specific score by a specific date. It might mean getting two years of self-employment income documented. It might mean paying down a debt load to bring your ratios into range, or completing renovations so the property qualifies conventionally, or simply selling a property that is already listed.

We identify the obstacle that pushed you into private lending, we build the plan to remove it, and I check in with you during the term to make sure the plan is on track.

A private mortgage should be a bridge. Bridges are meant to be crossed and left behind.

My Relationships Matter Here

Twenty-five years in this industry means I have long-standing relationships with many of BC's leading private lenders. That matters in two practical ways.

First, speed. When I bring a lender a file, they know my files are properly assembled and honestly presented. That reputation gets answers faster, which matters enormously when your closing is in ten days.

Second, terms. Established relationships often mean better rates and more flexible conditions than a broker walking in cold.

If You Need an Answer Quickly

Call 604-787-5136. I will give you an honest read on whether private lending is right for your situation, usually the same day, and if a better option exists I will tell you that instead.

I work with clients across Langley, Surrey, the Fraser Valley, and all of BC.