Cracking the Private Money Code: Jay Conner’s Secrets to Real Estate Funding Success

***Guest Appearance

Credits to:

https://www.youtube.com/@motivatedsellerscom  

"1-on-1 with Jay Conner: How This Investor Raised $2M in 90 Days Without Banks or Credit"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5WKN17_dlg 

If you’re a real estate investor—or an aspiring one—chances are you’ve run up against the biggest hurdle in the game: funding your deals. Traditional bank loans can be restrictive, slow, and, as Jay Conner discovered in 2009, suddenly unavailable. But what if there was a way to fund your real estate deals without banks, hard money lenders, or credit checks, and keep all the profit for yourself?

That’s the secret Jay Conner, now known nationwide as the Private Money Authority, shared on a recent episode of “Investor One on One” with Or Sapir. Jay’s story isn’t just inspiring—it’s a masterclass in creative real estate financing and a roadmap for investors looking to access private capital.

From Bank Rejection to a Private Money Breakthrough

Jay’s journey began in small-town North Carolina, flipping houses the traditional way by relying on the local bank for funding. “I closed my first six years’ worth of deals with unsecured bank credit,” he admits. But like so many investors during the 2008-2009 financial meltdown, he found himself abruptly cut off from his bank—no warning, no recourse.

Shocked and frustrated, Jay did what any true entrepreneur does: he turned his problem into an opportunity. He reached out to a friend who introduced him to the concept of private money—capital provided by individuals, not institutions, who want to earn higher returns by funding real estate deals.

Jay dove in, learned everything he could, and attended his first seminar. The result? He raised over $2 million in private capital in just 90 days. That move not only saved his career, it launched him as a leader in teaching others how to use private funds to fuel their real estate ambitions.

Private Money vs. Hard Money: What’s the Difference?

As Jay explains, private money comes directly from individuals (think: people in your own network who have retirement accounts or extra savings) rather than institutions or hard money lenders. It’s not a JV partnership; the private lender acts as the bank, secured by a mortgage or deed of trust, while you, the investor, retain full ownership.

Jay highlights several advantages to using private money over hard money loans:

• Lower interest rates (Jay pays 8%, compared to 12-14% for hard money)
• No points or origination fees
• No extension fees
• 100% financing of the purchase and rehab costs
• Faster and more flexible closings

How to Raise Private Money Without Begging or Chasing

One of the biggest myths Jay busts is that private lenders are hard to find or only fund experienced investors. His approach? Don’t chase. Don’t beg. Don’t sell. Don’t persuade. Instead, become a teacher. Jay wears his “private money teacher” hat and simply educates people in his circle about the opportunity to earn stable, above-market returns by becoming a lender for his deals.

His key strategies include:

• Teaching (not pitching) the basics of private lending
• Explaining how their investment is protected (collateral, insurance, title, etc.)
• Laying out the program terms with total transparency
• Building trust by keeping deal discussions separate from the initial introduction

Proof in the Pudding: Real Results and Action Steps

Jay’s system has helped him—and countless students—secure all the funding they need, often with people they already know. In his world, there’s actually more private money available than there are deals to fund. With average profits of $86,000 per deal in his ma