TINKER, TAILOR, INVESTOR, LENDER?

What were you going to be for Halloween?  Let’s say you own investment properties, and in the course of business, you offer financing to some of your buyers.  You’re going to be in legal trouble for Halloween and beyond if you make too many of those loans without a license!  

You might be a LENDER if you’re holding three loans.  Often, three is the golden rule, but there are lots of rules for Lenders, and if you’re an unlicensed Lender, you could get tangled up in them.  Sure, as an INVESTOR, your business isn’t necessarily to lend money—you might lend to people you know, not soliciting loans to strangers.  However, as an INVESTOR, if you make a habit of making too many loans, you could accidentally become a LENDER.   

Did you mean to be a LENDER?  Did you mean to incur a bunch of expensive fines and legal fees for loaning money without a license?  

Button up your investment operation with a Mortgage Broker, then you don’t have to worry about being a LENDER.  And don’t confuse the word ‘LENDER’ with the word ‘INVESTOR,’ especially not in front of a JUDGE!

From Land Title Talk Podcast - https://youtube.com/live/A5KWV-ao_zg

September 3, 2025

Content by Stephen Collins and CJ Godwin