The Quick Read: Yes, send a short one-page summary first when you have a specific property and a clear exit plan, because it works as a pre-screen that shows the lender whether the deal fits its box before either side spends time or money on a full file. It is not an application and not a request for a commitment. The summary is also an affordable way to compare several lenders.
- Lead with the property, the price, the as-is value, the after-repair value (ARV), the budget and the exit.
- Keep it to one page and send it by email with clear file names.
- Hold back sensitive financials and full entity packages until a lender shows real interest.
- If you have no property under contract yet, a proof-of-funds letter or pre-approval may be the better first send.
- Terms are set after valuation and documents, so a summary never locks in leverage or pricing.
What Is a Deal Summary and What Does a Lender Do With It?
A deal summary is a one-page description of the property, the plan and the repayment path. The lender reads it to decide whether the deal belongs in its box. Hard money underwriting is asset-based, meaning the lender looks at what the property is worth now, what it will be worth after the work, and how the loan gets repaid, as Financer’s overview of hard money loans describes. A short, number-driven page fits that screen.
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.
Nav’s step-by-step guide to hard money lists submitting deal and borrower information as step one. That submission covers the address, purchase price, scope of work, rehab budget and exit, plus the borrower’s experience and reserves. The summary is that first step in compact form.
Hard money loans are business-purpose loans on investment property. They are reviewed differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage, and the lender’s attention goes to the asset and the exit.
Across the wholesale network, what happens next is predictable. A lender triages the page and either asks follow-up questions, indicates interest, or passes. Silence usually means the deal sits outside that lender’s box. It rarely says anything about you personally.
Summary First or Full Package? A Decision Table
The right first send depends on how far along the deal is. A summary wins when you are still comparing lenders. A full package wins when the contract is signed and the deal has to move through a specific lender.
| Situation | Best first send | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Property found, no contract yet | One-page summary | Tests fit before you commit |
| Under contract, comps and budget ready | Summary, then full file on interest | Saves wasted document work |
| Comparing several lenders | Same summary to each | Keeps the numbers consistent |
| No property yet | Proof of funds or pre-approval | Nothing to summarize |
| Repeat borrower with a standing lender | Full package | The relationship already exists |
The summary-first path gains information. You learn which lenders want the deal and which want changes before you pay for an appraisal or broker price opinion.
The path carries one risk. A sloppy summary can cost you a lender’s attention on a deal that was actually good. If the numbers are not ready, wait.
What Goes in the Summary?
Every line in the summary answers a question the lender would otherwise have to ask. Most of these elements also appear in Nav’s description of the first submission step.
| Element | Why the lender wants it | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Address and property type | Confirms the collateral fits 1-4 units | Leaving out unit count |
| Purchase price or contract | Sets the cost basis | Rounding or guessing |
| As-is value and ARV, with comps | Drives the asset-based review | Optimistic ARV |
| Line-item rehab budget and timeline | Shows the plan is real | One lump-sum figure |
| Exit plan | Shows how the loan is repaid | Vague, or two exits with no lead choice |
| Cash you are putting in | Shows your equity at risk | Not stating the source |
| Experience blurb | Sets the leverage tier | Padding with unrelated history |
Be conservative on value. A believable ARV with solid comps does more for you than a high number the lender will cut. If the comps are thin or far from the property, Lendmire’s piece How a Hard Money Lender Treats Distant Comps on a First Flip explains how that gets read.
Be specific on the scope. A budget that names the work item by item reads as a plan. A single round number reads as a guess.
What Does a Strong Summary Look Like?
A strong summary reads like a loan officer could forward it unchanged. Here is a generic template with placeholders, using no program terms.
Subject line: Deal summary, address, unit count, rehab or bridge.
Property: Type, unit count, condition in one sentence.
Price and basis: Purchase price amount, contract signed or pending, closing target date.
Value: As-is amount. ARV amount based on number recent sales within distance, attached.
Budget: Amount total, itemized in the attached sheet, with contractor confirmed.
Exit: Sell after rehab, or refinance into long-term rental financing.
Cash in: Amount, from source, bank statement attached.
Borrower: Number completed projects, one line on the most relevant.
A weak version of the same deal says: great flip in a hot area, big upside, need funding. It names no price, no comps, no budget and no exit. A lender reading it has to ask for everything, and many will simply move on.
The difference is not polish. The strong version lets the lender run the numbers in a minute and see where the risk sits.
What to Attach Now and What to Hold Back
Attach what proves the numbers. Hold back what only matters once a lender is serious.
Attach now:
- Photos of the property.
- The purchase contract, if you have one.
- The itemized rehab budget, and contractor bids if you have them.
- Comps supporting the ARV.
- A bank statement showing cash to close.
OneMain Financial’s hard money overview lists proof of funds and property documents such as the purchase contract, insurance and construction bids among the items lenders ask for. Having them ready saves a round of emails.
Hold back until interest is real:
- Full entity documents, including articles of organization, the operating agreement and the EIN document.
- Government ID and title work.
- Insurance binders.
- Detailed personal financial statements.
These arrive after a term sheet. Sending them to five lenders on a first pass spreads sensitive records around for no gain.
How Do You Send It?
Send it by email as a single PDF, with the attachments named plainly. A subject line with the address and deal type lets the lender file and find it. Name the files by content, such as budget, comps and contract, rather than leaving camera defaults.
Follow up once if you hear nothing. A short note confirming receipt and asking whether the deal fits is enough. Repeated nudges signal inexperience.
Answer follow-up questions in full and in writing. Lenders often come back with a gap, such as a scope item that does not match the budget. A clean answer builds trust, and a defensive one ends the conversation.
Sending the same summary to several lenders is normal and sensible. Use one identical page so the numbers never differ between versions. Keep a simple log of who received it and what each said. You do not need to announce that you are comparing, but you should not misstate where you stand either.
What Happens After You Send It?
The sequence is steady across most lenders in the network:
1. Triage. The lender checks the deal against its box: collateral type, location, loan size and borrower tier.
2. Questions. If the deal fits, the lender asks about gaps in the budget, comps or exit.
3. Valuation. The lender typically orders a broker price opinion or a licensed appraisal to set value.
4. Term sheet. If the deal works, the lender issues terms. Look for firm terms rather than a loose range.
5. Full package. Entity documents, ID, title and insurance follow.
The summary never sets terms. Terms come after valuation and documents, and they depend on the property, the plan and your experience. Underwriting stays asset-based, but every file is reviewed individually and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Why Experience Changes the Answer
Leverage on these loans is tiered by documented completed projects. Across most of the network, the typical structure looks like this, though it varies by lender, property and experience:
- Fix-and-flip loans run up to 93% of project cost at 5 or more completed projects.
- They run up to 90% of project cost at 2 or more completed projects.
- They run up to 85% of project cost with fewer than 2 completed projects.
- Every one of those tiers is capped at 75% of after-repair value.
- Bridge purchases without rehab go up to 80% of purchase price.
- Cash-out and rate-and-term refinances go up to 65% of value.
- Up to 100% of the rehab budget funds in draws against completed work. That is a rehab-budget figure, not a purchase loan-to-value.
Loan amounts reach up to $5,000,000, with larger loans by exception, and smaller balances vary by lender. Terms run 6 to 18 months, interest-only, with no prepayment penalty. Credit starts at a 620 minimum score, with added conditions below 660. Collateral is non-owner-occupied residential, 1-4 units, and ground-up construction goes to 10 units.
There is no true 100% purchase program. Anything that sounds like one is really a mix of cost-based leverage and rehab draws. The top tier is reserved for experienced investors.
So the experience line in your summary matters. A first-time investor should put the team, the contractor and the plan on the page, because the track record is short. A lender who sees a credible team can still work with a first deal at the lower tier.
Mistakes That Stall a Deal
- A vague exit. Lenders look hardest at how they get repaid. An exit that depends on uncertain conditions invites a pass.
- Inflated value. If the ARV is out of line with the comps, the lender will mark it down, and your credibility goes with it.
- No budget detail. A lump-sum rehab number tells the lender nothing about risk.
- Missing cash source. Lenders at least want a bank statement confirming cash to close. Some require seasoning on funds, so ask early.
- Inconsistent numbers. Price, budget or timeline that change between emails look careless.
- Over-sharing. Sending the whole file to every lender on the first pass creates privacy exposure with little benefit.
- Judging by price alone. Compare fees, structure and draw handling, not one headline number. Borrowing below the maximum can also lower the cost of a first deal.
Variants: First-Timer, Broker-Submitted, and Deal Type
First-time investors. Put the team on the page. Name the contractor, the property manager if any, and the exit. Expect lower leverage and tighter review.
Broker-submitted deals. A broker who knows which lenders work best with newer investors can place the summary where it fits and advise on draw processes. Lendmire works this way as a broker, arranging financing through select lenders in its wholesale network across 41 markets, including Washington, D.C.
Purchase with rehab. Lead with purchase price, as-is value, budget and ARV.
Bridge purchase without rehab. Lead with price, value and the reason the property needs short-term capital.
Refinance. Lead with current value, the existing payoff and what the cash-out or refinance is for.
Ground-up construction. Lead with the plans, the cost budget, the builder’s record and the completed value.
Rental exit. For a rental investor, the exit is often a refinance into long-term debt, and the summary should say so. The numbers shift from ARV toward rent. Many investors refinance out of hard money into long-term DSCR financing once the property stabilizes, and Lendmire brokers that path. The complete DSCR loans guide covers how that coverage test works. A DSCR file compares rent to the full monthly obligation, so a rental exit summary should include a realistic rent figure from the start.
Key Terms Defined
ARV (after-repair value): The estimated market value of the property once the planned work is complete.
As-is value: What the property is worth today in its current condition.
BPO (broker price opinion): A value estimate from a real estate broker, often used in place of a full appraisal.
Loan-to-cost (LTC): The loan amount as a share of total project cost, which is how hard money leverage is usually stated.
Term sheet: The lender’s written outline of proposed terms, issued after the deal passes screening.
Exit strategy: The plan for repaying the loan, usually a sale or a refinance into long-term financing.
Pre-Send Checklist
Run this list before you hit send. If any line is a no, wait.
- Is the price real and sourced from a contract or offer?
- Do the comps support the ARV, and are they close in distance and type?
- Is the budget itemized with a timeline?
- Is there one clear exit, with a backup noted?
- Can you show cash to close?
- Is the experience line accurate?
- Are the file names clear and the page one page?
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should a deal summary be?
One page. Anything longer belongs in the attachments. The summary should let a lender judge fit in a single read, and the budget, comps and contract sit behind it.
Do I still need a summary if I am pre-qualified?
Yes. Pre-qualification is not a commitment, and it does not describe a specific property. The summary tells the lender about this deal, and terms still depend on valuation, experience, credit and reserves.
What if I do not have a contract yet?
Send a proof-of-funds letter or seek pre-approval first if you have no property, because there is nothing to summarize. If you have a target property but no contract, a summary can still test fit, as long as you mark the contract status honestly.
Is it fine to send the same summary to several lenders?
Yes, and it is smart. Use identical numbers in every copy and track the responses. Comparing fees, structure and the firmness of the terms tells you more than any single quote.
Will a lender approve my deal from the summary alone?
No. The summary is a screen. Approval depends on valuation, the full document package and individual underwriting, and nothing at the summary stage is a commitment to lend.
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. The calculator on the site gives an illustrative estimate you can edit as you refine the deal.
For current guidelines and terms, see Lendmire’s hard money loan programs page.
About Lendmire
Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage brokerage focused on DSCR investor financing, helping arrange programs through wholesale and investor-lending channels in 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. DSCR loans are evaluated by the lender on property cash flow rather than personal income, subject to lender guidelines, supporting LLC closings and accommodating investors with four or more financed properties. Scotsman Guide Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. Financer, hard money loan overview
3. OneMain Financial, hard money loan basics
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 Lender Provide a Proof of Funds Letter for Offers? · Can You Use Hard Money to Buy and Rehab a Duplex? · Should You Choose a Hard Money Lender for a Flip on Cost Alone?
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.