After 25 years as a private, hard money lender, I've come to realize that many mortgage brokers don't know the documents required by lenders to evaluate, approve and close a loan. So here is a list I found and modified. As a hard money lender I probably would not require many (most) of these docs, but it would depend on the individual loan. For instance, strong collateral and low LTV - like 40% - would require almost no backup documentation, while a marginal loan at high (65% - 70%) LTV may require most of these documents.

1. Borrower / Sponsor Documents

Entity & organizational

• Borrowing entity docs (LLC/LP/Corp formation docs)
• Operating Agreement / Partnership Agreement
• Certificate of Good Standing
• Organizational chart (showing ownership structure)

Financial strength

• Personal Financial Statement (PFS) of guarantors
• Schedule of Real Estate Owned (SREO)
• Last 2–3 years personal tax returns (for guarantors)
• Last 2–3 years business tax returns (if applicable)

Track record

• Sponsor resume / bio
• Experience summary (similar deals completed)
• References (sometimes)

2. Property Information

Basic property details

• Property overview (address, type, year built, units/sq ft)
• Photos
• Rent roll (current, detailed)
• Trailing 12-month operating statement (T-12)
• Current year operating statement (YTD)

Historical financials

• Last 2–3 years operating statements
• CapEx history

Market data

• Submarket overview
• Comparable rents/sales (if available)

3. Deal / Loan Request Summary

• Loan request amount
• Loan purpose (acquisition, refinance, construction, bridge)
• Purchase price or current value
• Sources & uses of funds
• Business plan (value-add, lease-up, etc.)
• Exit strategy (refinance, sale, hold)

Often presented as:

• Executive summary or deal memo

4. Third-Party Reports (Ordered during underwriting)

• Appraisal
• Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA)
• Property Condition Report (PCR) / Engineering report
• Survey (ALTA survey)
• Title report / title commitment
• Zoning report (sometimes)

5. Income & Lease Documentation

• Copies of major leases (or all leases for smaller assets)
• Lease abstracts (sometimes)
• Estoppel certificates (later in process)
• Tenant sales reports (for retail, if applicable)

6. Banking & Liquidity Verification

• Recent bank statements (2–6 months)
• Proof of equity injection funds
• Brokerage / investment account statements

7. Legal & Compliance Documents

• Purchase & Sale Agreement (PSA) (for acquisitions)
• Borrower resolutions / authorizations
• KYC/AML information (Know Your Customer)
• Insurance certificates (or quotes)
• Entity certificates (incumbency, authority)

8. Underwriting & Financial Models

Sometimes borrower-provided, sometimes lender-built.

• Pro forma financials
• Cash flow model
• Debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) analysis
• Rent comps / expense assumptions

9. Construction / CapEx (if applicable)

• Construction budget
• Scope of work
• Contractor agreements
• Plans & specs
• Timeline / draw schedule