Frequently Asked Questions

Mayacamas Lending works with business owners and real estate investors who hold equity in non-owner-occupied California real estate and need capital for a business purpose. That covers fix and flip projects, ground-up construction, multifamily and commercial acquisitions, long-term rental and rental portfolio financing, and bridge loans secured against property a borrower already owns.

We lend two ways. On loans we fund and service directly through our own private lender network, we go to 65 percent loan-to-value. When a deal calls for higher leverage, we broker it to our partner lenders, where the right borrower and the right project can reach 90 percent. Raw land sits at 50 percent or below in either case. Which path a deal takes depends on the collateral, the borrower’s experience, and the exit, and we tell you which one you are on before you spend money on reports.

We underwrite the equity and the exit before we underwrite the credit score, but a borrower still needs liquidity to carry the loan and a realistic plan to finish the project. We do not make consumer loans, we do not lend against owner-occupied primary residences, and we do not fund deals that only work if the market cooperates. If a borrower has no equity, no exit, or no cash to service the payment, we are not the right lender and we will say so on the first call.

Both, depending on the deal. Mayacamas Lending is a California licensed real estate brokerage, DRE #02306252. We originate, underwrite, and service every loan that carries our name.

On loans funded through our own private lender network, we control the capital, the underwriting, and the servicing start to finish, and we lend to 65 percent loan-to-value. There is no outside approval and no third party who can change the terms after you are committed. When a deal needs leverage above that, we broker it to partner lenders we have worked with repeatedly and know the credit boxes of, which is how borrowers reach up to 90 percent. We also participate directly alongside our network on larger or more complex transactions.

What matters more than the label is whether the person quoting you can actually deliver the terms. We tell you on the first call which path your deal is on and who is funding it. If we are brokering it, we tell you that too, along with why that lender is the right fit. We do not shop a file to twenty lenders and hope. If a deal does not fit anywhere in our network, we say so rather than tying up your deposit while we look.

Our loans are short-term, interest-only, and secured by a recorded deed of trust. Terms run from 12 to 24 months, most commonly 12, with extension options available on request and subject to approval.

Rates typically fall between 8 and 11 percent depending on position, leverage, property type, and the strength of the exit. First position on a stabilized commercial property prices at the low end. Second position, raw land, and ground-up construction price higher because the risk is higher. Loan amounts run from $100,000 to $10 million.

Most of our loans carry a three month minimum interest period. If a borrower pays off inside that window, interest is still owed through month three. We tell you this before you sign, not when you request a payoff demand. Private capital gets committed to your deal and priced for a term, and the minimum interest period is what makes that commitment work on both sides.

Every loan is written for a business purpose with a defined exit, either a sale or a refinance. We do not write loans without one. If a borrower cannot articulate how the loan gets repaid, the term sheet is not the problem.

Rates and terms quoted here are ranges, not offers, and are subject to underwriting, appraisal, and market conditions.

Most loans fund in 7 to 10 business days from a complete package when we can close on a broker price opinion. A BPO is faster and cheaper than a full appraisal, and on deals where the collateral is straightforward and the leverage is conservative, it is all we need. When a file requires a full appraisal, add about 7 days for the report. Brokered deals that go to a partner lender add 2 to 3 days for that lender’s own review.

Here is the actual sequence. Term sheet within 24 to 48 hours of receiving your package. BPO ordered the day the term sheet is signed, title ordered in parallel rather than after. Docs drawn and sent to escrow once the valuation and preliminary title report are in. Fund at recording.

Speed is mostly a function of what you hand us on day one. Entity documents, a current rent roll or scope of work, insurance information, and payoff demands on any existing liens are the four things that decide whether this takes eight days or three weeks. We send you that list up front so nothing surprises you in week two.

What genuinely slows a file down: clouded title, an unrecorded lien nobody knew about, a payoff demand a prior lender is slow to produce, a property the appraiser cannot access, or a borrower entity that is suspended with the Secretary of State. None of those compress by wanting it more, and we will tell you the day we see one rather than letting you plan around a date we cannot hit.

Every Mayacamas loan is secured by a recorded deed of trust on non-owner-occupied California real estate. The borrower needs existing equity in the property, and the property needs to be held for a business purpose rather than lived in as a primary residence.

We lend against residential investment property including single family rentals and small multifamily, larger multifamily, commercial and mixed-use buildings, industrial property, retail, office, land held for development, and ground-up construction projects. First position is the norm. We will take second position behind an existing lender when the combined leverage is conservative and the first lienholder is stable, which is often the cleanest solution when a borrower does not want to disturb a good bank loan.

Leverage depends on the collateral and the funding path. On loans we fund through our own private lender network we go to 65 percent loan-to-value. Deals that need more leverage get brokered to partner lenders, where the right project can reach 90 percent. Raw land sits at 50 percent or below in either case, because land has no income and a slower path to sale if something goes wrong.

What we will not lend against: owner-occupied primary residences, consumer purpose loans of any kind, property outside California, and collateral we cannot value or exit with confidence. If the only way the numbers work is an optimistic value on an unusual property, that is not a deal we take. Protection means the loan has to survive a bad market, not just a good one.

We tell you quickly and we tell you why. A no on the first call is worth more to you than a maybe that runs three weeks and ends the same way. If a deal does not work, you should hear it while you still have time to solve the problem somewhere else.

Most declines come down to one of a few things: not enough equity in the property, no clear exit, insufficient liquidity to carry the payment, collateral we cannot value or sell with confidence, a consumer purpose rather than a business purpose, or property outside California. We will name which one it is rather than sending a form letter.

When the deal is sound but not ours, we refer it. We have spent years in this market on both the bank side and the private side, and we know which lenders do what. That includes conventional banks and credit unions when a borrower is more bankable than they realized, SBA lenders, construction specialists, equipment and receivables financing, and other private lenders whose criteria fit where ours do not. We make the introduction and we tell the other lender what we like about the file.

Sometimes the answer is not a different lender at all. It might be a smaller loan, a different position, a co-borrower, or waiting ninety days to fix something specific. We will tell you that too, even though it is not a loan for us.

Borrowers pay an origination fee at closing, typically 1 to 3 points depending on loan size, complexity, and term. Smaller and shorter loans carry more points because the work involved does not scale down with the loan amount.

Beyond origination, a borrower pays third-party costs directly: appraisal or broker price opinion, title and escrow, recording, and where applicable a construction fund control or draw administration fee. These are actual costs paid to actual vendors and we do not mark them up. We give you an estimate before you spend a dollar on any of them.

Servicing is not a separate charge. It is a small spread built into the interest rate, so your monthly payment covers loan management with no surprise line items. There are no junk fees, no document prep fees, and no processing fees stacked onto the closing statement.

The full cost of the loan appears on your term sheet before you commit. If a number changes after that, we explain why before you sign anything, not after.

Trust deed investing suits people who already understand real estate and want a secured, passive position rather than another property to manage. Most of our lenders are accredited investors, family offices, retired business owners, and people holding proceeds from the sale of a business or a property who want that capital working without taking on operations.

Your investment is secured by a deed of trust recorded on California real estate in your name. You hold the lien. Loans are short term, typically 12 months, secured against property at conservative leverage, and target returns around 10 percent. Payments come to you monthly by ACH. Minimum investment is $100,000. We handle underwriting, documentation, servicing, borrower communication, insurance tracking, and 1099s, so your involvement after funding is reviewing statements.

This is a fit if you want current income from a secured position, you can commit capital for the length of the loan, and you would rather evaluate a specific property and borrower than buy a pooled product with no visibility into what is inside it. We send you the full file before you commit. Address, valuation, borrower background, leverage, exit plan, and what we think the risks are. You decide deal by deal.

This is not a fit if you need your money back on short notice, because these loans have no secondary market and your capital is committed until payoff. It is not a fit if a late borrower payment would create a problem for you, because borrowers do occasionally pay late and occasionally default, and the remedy in a default is foreclosure, which takes months. It is not a fit if you are looking for a guaranteed return. Real estate secures these loans, and real estate can lose value. We underwrite so that the collateral protects you even if the borrower fails, but protection is not the same thing as a guarantee, and anyone telling you otherwise is selling something.

Valuation starts with an independent third party. We use certified appraisers and, on many loans, broker price opinions from local brokers who transact in that specific submarket. The person forming the opinion of value has no stake in whether the loan funds and is not compensated based on the outcome.

We also underwrite the collateral ourselves rather than accepting a number and moving on. That means looking at comparable sales directly, understanding what the property would actually sell for in ninety days rather than in a patient market, and forming a view on the exit. On construction and renovation loans we underwrite to as-is value and release renovation funds against completed work rather than lending against a projected value on day one.

Here is the part that matters more than any of it. Valuation is an opinion, not a fact, and every valuation carries a margin of error. Your protection is not that the number is exactly right. Your protection is the equity cushion underneath it. At 65 percent loan-to-value, the property can be worth meaningfully less than the appraisal said and your position is still covered. That cushion is the reason we hold leverage where we do, and it is why we cap raw land at 50 percent or below, since land values move faster and sell slower.

You see the valuation before you fund. Not a summary of it, the report itself, along with the address, the comparables, and our own read on what the property is worth and what it would take to sell it. If you disagree with the number, you do not fund the loan. Every deal is your decision.

Your loan is secured by a deed of trust recorded against the property with the county recorder, naming you as beneficiary. It is a public record. You can look it up yourself, and we send you the recorded copy after closing along with the title policy.

Recording establishes your priority. A first position deed of trust means you are ahead of every lien recorded after yours and you are paid first from any sale or foreclosure proceeds. Most of our loans are first position. We also place second position loans behind an existing lender, typically a bank the borrower wants to keep in place, and in that case you are behind that lender in priority and we say so plainly before you fund. Second position is not a lesser deal, but it is a different risk, and it is priced and leveraged accordingly.

A lender’s title insurance policy is issued in your name at closing, protecting your lien position against title defects, undisclosed liens, and errors in the public record. You are also named as mortgagee on the borrower’s hazard insurance, so if the property is damaged you are notified and included on any claim. We track that coverage for the life of the loan and follow up if a policy lapses.

Before you fund, you receive the preliminary title report showing every lien of record and where yours will sit. Nothing about your position is a surprise after closing, because you saw the report before you committed.

No. Investors pay us nothing. Origination is paid by the borrower at closing, and our servicing compensation is a small spread built into the interest rate, also borne by the borrower. There is no upfront deduction, no management fee, no administration fee, and no annual charge against your position. One hundred percent of your capital goes into the loan on day one, and the return you are quoted is the return you receive.

It is worth being direct about what that means. We are paid by borrowers, which is standard in this business but is still an incentive you should understand rather than take on faith. Our protection against it is that we lend our own capital and our network’s capital into the same deals, on the same terms, in the same position. We are not selling you a loan we would not fund ourselves. If we would not take the position, we do not offer it.

The costs that do exist on your side are the ones any secured lender carries. If a borrower defaults, enforcement and foreclosure carry legal and trustee costs, which are generally recoverable from the borrower or from sale proceeds but may need to be advanced first. We tell you before you fund what that exposure looks like on your specific deal rather than after something goes wrong..

We streamline the payment process for your convenience. Borrowers are set up with ACH (Automated Clearing House) payments, ensuring reliable and timely collection. Once collected, we distribute your portion of the payments monthly directly to you. If a borrower is late, our in-house team will proactively follow up, provide you with clear updates, and present proposed solutions.

Defaults are uncommon at conservative leverage, but they happen, and you should understand the process before you fund rather than during.

It usually starts with a missed payment. Our team contacts the borrower the day it is missed and you hear from us with what we learned. Most late payments resolve within days. Some turn into a request for an extension or a modification, which we bring to you with our recommendation and the analysis behind it. You decide.

If the loan does not cure, the remedy is foreclosure. Nearly all California trust deed foreclosures are nonjudicial, meaning the process runs through the trustee rather than the courts. A notice of default is recorded, the borrower has three months to reinstate, and if the loan is still unpaid a notice of sale is published and posted at least 20 days before the sale date. That is roughly four months from start to auction in the fastest case, and longer in practice if the borrower contests or files bankruptcy. Legal and trustee costs are advanced during this period and are generally recoverable from sale proceeds.

At the sale the property goes to the highest bidder, or it reverts to you as the lender. This is where the equity cushion does its work. At 65 percent loan-to-value, the property can sell well below its original valuation and still return your principal and accrued interest. That margin is the entire reason we hold leverage where we do.

Two honest caveats. Nonjudicial foreclosure is faster, but it gives up the right to pursue the borrower personally for any shortfall, so the collateral is your recovery. And your capital is tied up and not earning during the process. A default usually does not mean losing money. It usually means waiting longer for it than you planned.

We do, from funding through payoff. Once your deed of trust records, your involvement is reviewing what we send you.

Day to day, that means collecting payments by ACH and distributing yours monthly, handling every borrower conversation, and issuing your 1099 at year end. It also means the monitoring most investors do not think to ask about. We track hazard insurance for the life of the loan and follow up if a policy lapses or a carrier non-renews, which in this state is not rare. We monitor property taxes, because delinquent taxes become a lien ahead of your deed of trust, and a borrower quietly falling behind on taxes is an early warning worth catching. On second position loans we watch the senior lien for default activity. On construction loans we administer the draw schedule and release funds against completed and inspected work rather than against invoices.

You receive a monthly statement and you hear from us whenever something changes. A late payment, an extension request, a lapsed policy, a borrower whose plans have shifted. We do not batch bad news into a quarterly update.

Decisions stay with you. Extensions, modifications, forbearance, and the choice to proceed to foreclosure are yours to make. We bring you the request, our analysis, and a recommendation, then execute whatever you decide.

At payoff we reconvey the deed of trust, return your principal with interest owed through the payoff date, and send you the recorded reconveyance. If you want to roll that capital into the next deal, we will usually have one to show you.