The Quick Read: Assemble your file in the order an underwriter reads a flip: the property and contract, the rehab scope and line-item budget, the value support, your entity and ID, proof of cash, your experience record, and a written exit plan, because hard money lenders underwrite the deal first and your personal income second. Hard money does not mean no documents. It means fewer income documents and more deal documents. Lendmire arranges these loans through select lenders in its wholesale network, and every lender sets its own checklist.
- Build the file before you contact a lender, not after the term sheet arrives.
- Make the scope of work and the budget match line for line.
- Prove cash for your share of the deal plus a cushion, because draws reimburse finished work.
- Keep names identical across the contract, the entity papers, and your bank records.
- Your experience record sets your leverage tier, so document every completed project.
What a Flip File Actually Contains
A flip file has seven parts: property, rehab package, value support, entity and borrower papers, liquidity proof, experience record, and exit plan. Lenders judge whether the numbers are believable. A clean, matching file answers their questions before they ask them.
What this loan actually costs to carry.
Hard money is sized against the project and priced by time. Enter the deal and see how much the program will lend, the cash required at closing, the carry while you hold it, and what is left at the exit.
Leverage tiers on the current program: 85% with fewer than 2, 90% with 2 or more, 93% with 5 or more completed projects — every tier capped at 75% of after-repair value. Loan amounts up to $5,000,000, larger by exception; terms of 6 to 18 months, interest-only, no prepayment penalty. The rehab portion funds in draws against completed work, not at closing.
Program parameters shown update from Lendmire’s centralized guideline source. Rate, points, and months are editable assumptions, not quoted terms.
Cost cap sets the loan · positive spread
Illustrative estimate only — not a quote, Loan Estimate, approval, or commitment to lend. Rate, points, and months are editable assumptions. Hard money is business-purpose financing for real estate investors, not a consumer mortgage. Leverage on the current program tops out at 93% of project cost for investors with a documented track record, capped at 75% of after-repair value, with rehab funding up to 100% of the documented budget released in draws; actual terms vary by lender, borrower experience, property, and exit. Lendmire is a mortgage broker, not a lender.
No government agency publishes one standard hard money checklist. The list is each lender’s underwriting policy, and overlays differ across the network. Across the lenders Lendmire works with, the same core items appear again and again. What changes is how much personal financial detail a lender wants on top of them.
Some asset-based flip lenders skip income documents entirely. Others still ask for bank statements, a schedule of owned real estate, or a personal financial statement. The safe rule is to ask first and prepare for the heavier version.
The Master Document Table
This table shows what to gather, why the lender wants it, and when to start. “Before contract” means you can finish it while still shopping for deals.
| Document | Why the lender wants it | Gather it |
|---|---|---|
| Executed purchase contract, all addenda | Proves price, parties, and terms | At application |
| Line-item scope and matching budget | Shows the rehab is real and fundable | Before contract |
| Sold comps for after-repair value | Supports the value you project | Before contract |
| Entity papers, EIN letter, ID | Confirms who owns and who signs | Before contract |
| Complete bank or brokerage statements | Proves cash for your share and cushion | Before contract |
| Track-record sheet and exit plan | Sets your leverage tier and takeout | Before contract |
Key Terms Defined
After-repair value (ARV) is what the property should be worth once the rehab is finished.
Scope of work is the written list of every repair, with the trade and the cost for each line.
Draw is a release of rehab funds from the lender after you finish a phase of work.
Lien waiver is a signed statement from a contractor or supplier that they were paid and will not claim a lien on the property.
Proof of funds is account statements showing you hold the cash the deal requires.
Loan-to-cost is the loan amount measured against your total project cost, not against the property’s value alone.
EIN is the federal tax ID number your entity uses, and the EIN letter is the IRS document that confirms it.
Step One: The Property and the Contract
Start with the executed purchase contract and every addendum. Add dated photos and written condition notes. The lender needs to see the real price, the real parties, and the real condition of the house.
Collateral on a typical hard money flip is non-owner-occupied residential property, one to four units. If the plan involves anything outside that, raise it with your broker before building a file around it.
Step Two: The Rehab Package
The rehab package is where most files get questioned. Build it in three layers:
1. A line-item scope of work, with the trade and cost on every line.
2. A line-item budget that mirrors the scope exactly, including a contingency row.
3. Contractor bids and proof of contractor insurance behind the numbers.
A lump-sum or round-number budget draws questions fast. So does a budget that does not match the scope, or a scope full of vague lines like “interior work.” Run your own numbers hard before a lender does, and Lendmire’s piece How to Stress-Test a Flip Deal Before Taking Hard Money walks through how.
Turn bids into budget lines by copying each bid’s items onto your own sheet, one row per task. Do not paste a contractor’s total into one cell.
Step Three: Value Support
Pull sold comps of similar size and condition. Keep them conservative. An independent appraisal usually sets the final ARV, and many appraisals report both an as-is value and a subject-to-completion value.
Your comps are not the appraisal. They show the lender your thinking is sound, and they protect you from building a plan around a number the appraiser will not support.
Step Four: Entity, Borrower, and the EIN Letter
Most lenders in the network prefer an LLC borrower with a personal guarantee from the principal. Build the entity file now: the formation filing, the operating agreement, the EIN letter, a good standing certificate if requested, and government ID for every signer.
The most common entity mistake is a mismatch. The contract names you personally, the bank account belongs to the LLC, and the operating agreement lists a different member. Make every name match before you apply.
The EIN letter is the item people lose. The IRS lists three ways to confirm an EIN. Eligible users can download a digital CP575 from a Business Tax Account, which the IRS says can substitute for both the original CP575 notice and Letter 147C. You can also call the IRS business and specialty tax line and request Letter 147C. The original CP 575 notice cannot be reissued, so request the replacement before you need it.
Step Five: Liquidity and Proof of Funds
Bring complete statements, not screenshots. Every page should be readable and current. The balance has to cover your share of the purchase, closing costs, and a cushion.
Thin liquidity is a common reason a flip file stalls. The cash you need goes beyond the down payment, because the lender reimburses rehab costs only after the work is done. You front the early phases yourself.
Some lenders want cash in the bank rather than funds borrowed against another asset. Ask before you move money around, because new deposits trigger new questions.
When a lender asks for statements, send the complete files through the lender’s secure upload method rather than a text or an open email.
Step Six: Your Experience Record
Build a track-record sheet with address, purchase date, sale date, purchase price, and sale price for each completed flip. This sheet matters more than most investors expect. Hard money leverage is tiered by documented completed projects.
First-timers prepare the same documents as everyone else. They land in lower leverage tiers and often need more cash and a documented team: contractor, agent, and attorney or title contact. Without projects to list, a first-timer’s best move is to show the team and a tight budget.
Step Seven: The Written Exit Plan
Write down how the loan gets repaid. A sale is the usual plan. A refinance into long-term rental financing is the fallback, or the primary plan if you intend to hold. State both, with a reason the fallback is realistic.
The loan term runs six to eighteen months, so the plan must fit inside that window. Your rehab timeline plus any seasoning a takeout lender requires has to fit within the term. If you expect to need the full term, say why in the file.
What Your File Does to Your Leverage
Documentation drives the leverage tier. These are typical figures from the network, and they vary by lender, property, and experience.
- Fix-and-flip, 5+ completed projects: 93% of project cost.
- Fix-and-flip, 2+ completed projects: 90% of project cost.
- Fix-and-flip, fewer than 2: 85% of project cost.
- Every flip tier: capped at 75% of after-repair value.
- Bridge purchase with no rehab: up to 80% of purchase price.
- Rehab funds: up to 100% of the rehab budget, released in draws against completed work.
The top tier is reserved for experienced investors. Loan amounts run up to $5,000,000, with larger loans by exception. Terms are 6 to 18 months, interest-only, with no prepayment penalty. A 620 credit score is the typical minimum, with additional conditions below 660. Qualification remains asset-based: the property, the plan, and the exit. All of it is subject to lender guidelines, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Picture a hypothetical investor with two completed flips. The 90%-of-cost tier applies. The lender compares that figure to the 75%-of-ARV cap, and the lower of the two controls the loan. A weak comp set can quietly lower the cap even when your experience is strong.
A Mock File, Start to Finish
Say you are buying a three-bedroom house through an LLC. Your folder holds these items, in this order:
1. The signed contract and addenda.
2. Eleven dated photos with a one-page condition summary.
3. A scope of work with one line per task and trade.
4. A budget that matches the scope row for row, with a contingency line.
5. Two contractor bids and the contractor’s insurance certificate.
6. Three sold comps and a one-paragraph note on why they fit.
7. The LLC formation filing, operating agreement, EIN letter, and ID for each signer.
8. Full statements for every account that shows funds.
9. A track-record sheet and a one-page exit plan with a fallback.
An underwriter can read that folder top to bottom without sending a single question back. That is the goal.
Where the General Rule Breaks
Purchase-only deals. With no rehab, there is no scope approval, no draw schedule, and usually no inspection. The condition list is shorter. The entity, cash, and contract documents still apply.
Draw reimbursement. Draws pay for completed work. Expect to fund early phases from your own cash. Lenders differ on whether they require lien waivers, so ask for the draw rules in writing. Draw packages generally need invoices, an updated budget, progress photos, and lien waivers.
Inspections. A draw inspection confirms the work exists. It is not a permit or code sign-off. Pull permits and keep the final inspection records yourself.
Overruns. The lender funds only the approved budget. Contingency absorbs an overrun first, then your reserves, then a lender-approved budget revision. Keep the original budget, the revised budget, change orders, a variance log, and proof of payment. Overruns raise the cash you have in the deal. They do not raise the appraisal.
Licensing. No single national hard money license exists. Check the lender’s legal name against your state’s rules for business-purpose loans on one-to-four unit property. If a license is not required, ask the lender to state the exemption it relies on.
The Business-Purpose Paper Trail
Hard money loans are business-purpose investor loans. Lenders review them differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage. That is why they collect the contract, the scope, the entity papers, and a statement that you will not live in the property.
The federal rule behind this exempts credit extended primarily for a business purpose, and credit extended to someone other than a natural person, as laid out in 12 CFR 1026.3. Purpose is decided by the facts of the loan, not by a label on the note. Keep the flip’s purpose clean on paper.
Fixing Missing, Late, or Mismatched Documents
Run this check before you submit:
- Do the names match across the contract, the entity papers, and the bank statements?
- Does every budget line trace to a scope line?
- Are statements complete, readable, and recent?
- Is every signature and date present?
- Does the exit plan fit inside the loan term?
If something is missing, tell the lender what it is and when you will have it. A missing EIN letter is fixable with the IRS steps above. A mismatched name is fixable by amending the contract or the entity file. A silent gap looks worse than an honest one.
Expect questions after submission anyway, usually about the budget, the comps, or a deposit. Answer in writing and update the folder so the file stays current.
What the Paper Trail Does at the Exit
The paper trail carries into your exit. If you plan to hold, many investors refinance out of hard money into long-term DSCR financing once the property is stabilized, and Lendmire brokers that path. Lendmire’s article Can You Refinance a Flip Into DSCR Before the Hard Money Matures? covers the timing. The DSCR lender will still ask for entity documents and proof of reserves, and it will not fund budget overruns. Invoices and proof of payment matter again at that refinance.
The complete DSCR loans guide explains how that long-term loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Tax treatment varies by how funds are used and how the property is held, so consult a qualified professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
What documents do I need before applying?
The core set is the purchase contract, a line-item scope and budget, ARV comps, entity papers with the EIN letter, ID, proof of funds, an experience record, and a written exit plan. Each lender adds its own items, so ask for its list early.
Do I need an LLC?
Most lenders in the network prefer an LLC borrower with a personal guarantee, subject to lender program eligibility. Form the entity and open its bank account before you sign a contract, so every document carries the same name.
Do I need an appraisal up front?
Not usually. An independent appraisal generally sets the final ARV after you apply. Bring your own comps so you know where the number should land.
What if I am a first-time flipper?
You prepare the same documents and typically land in the lower leverage tier of 85% of project cost, still capped at 75% of ARV. Show a documented team, a tight budget, and extra cash. First-time investors qualify at the lower tiers, and the top tier is reserved for experienced investors.
How much cash should I show?
Show your share of the purchase, closing costs, and a cushion for the early rehab phases. Draws reimburse finished work, so your cash carries the project until each release. The exact requirement varies by lender, property, and experience.
Next Step
If you are buying, rehabbing, or refinancing an investment property on a short timeline and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare hard money options based on the project, the exit plan, leverage, and your goals. It arranges these loans through select lenders in its wholesale network across 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. A complete file makes that comparison faster to run and easier to trust.
About Lendmire
A non-QM mortgage broker (NMLS# 2371349), Lendmire arranges DSCR financing for real estate investors in 41 markets — 40 states plus Washington, D.C. Because deals are underwritten primarily on property cash flow rather than personal income documentation, the structure suits self-employed buyers and entity-owned portfolios. Lendmire places loans through wholesale investor lenders; it is not a direct lender. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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Informational only. Not a Loan Estimate, approval, or commitment to lend. Program availability and eligibility are subject to lender guidelines, credit approval, property review, and underwriting.
References
1. IRS: Employer identification number
2. eCFR: 12 CFR 1026.3, Exempt transactions
This article is part of Lendmire’s hard money loan program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: Can a Hard Money Bridge Loan Cover the Full Purchase Price? · Can You Use a HELOC or Home Equity Loan for Home Improvements? · Home Equity Loan Requirements Without Refinancing Your Mortgage
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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- Lendmire LLC · Firm NMLS# 2371349 · Verify firm licensure
Important disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a licensed mortgage brokerage. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or financial advisor. All loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not constitute a commitment to lend. Rates, terms, and program guidelines are subject to change without notice and vary by borrower profile, property type, and state. Information in this article is general in nature and is not financial, legal, or tax advice. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.