In today’s episode, business development manager Kyle Moody welcomes Susie Balda, a seasoned lender and relationship-builder from RehabWallet, to the show. Together, they dive into the world of real estate investing with self-directed IRAs, focusing on how RehabWallet’s unique non-recourse loan offerings empower investors to leverage their retirement accounts for both fix-and-flip and buy-and-hold projects.

Susie shares the story of her own transition from retail management to investing and lending, highlighting the power of networking through Real Estate Investor Association (REIA) meetings. She introduces listeners to RehabWallet’s boutique, family-oriented approach, which prioritizes borrower success, clear communication, and personalized underwriting. The episode explores how RehabWallet stands out from traditional lenders by offering fast, asset-based lending solutions, including their exclusive land and modular home package loan. Listeners will gain insight into the process of securing funding with a self-directed IRA, the importance of making an informed investment decision, and the broad scope of property types RehabWallet supports. Whether you’re a new investor or looking to scale, Susie and Kyle explain how RehabWallet’s approach delivers value and flexibility to clients investing in their IRA accounts.

Key takeaways:

1. Boutique Service and Relationship Focus: RehabWallet operates as a regional, small-team lender where clients are treated like family, providing guidance and support throughout the lending process to ensure clients’ success is prioritized.
2. Unique Non-Recourse IRA Loans: RehabWallet offers non-recourse loans for self-directed IRAs, enabling investors to leverage their retirement accounts for real estate without being personally liable, and they do so without changing their pricing structure.
3. Flexible Asset-Based Underwriting: Unlike traditional banks, RehabWallet streamlines lending with minimal paperwork and quick pre-approvals, focusing on evaluating deals based on their investability and giving personalized advice—even recommending walking away from bad deals.
4. Innovative Loan Programs: RehabWallet is the only lender currently offering loans that combine raw land purchase, manufactured or modular home acquisition, and construction costs into a single package, a game-changer for real estate investors looking for faster and simpler exits.
5. Broad Property and Geographic Scope: Investors can access RehabWallet’s lending solutions for single-family, multi-unit, commercial and land projects in Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee—even if they live elsewhere, so long as the property is within one of these states.

Tune in to discover how you can leverage RehabWallet’s offerings in your self-directed IRA, learn practical steps to start your real estate investing journey, and find out why funding should never be an obstacle to getting started.

You've got your new self-directed IRA and you're looking to do real estate investing. Is it a fix and flip? Is it a buy and hold? One way or another, is it possible that that property is going to need a lot of work and you don't know if you have all the funds in your retirement account to cover it? Don't worry, you're in luck because you're going to find out from RehabWallet and Susie Balda today how you can obtain a non-recourse loan from RehabWallet to secure your deal and take care of upfitting that property and get it ready for a rental or fix and flip. Don't miss it. Welcome everyone to another episode of the IRA Cafe powered by American IRA. I am Kyle Moody of the business development team here at American IRA. So wherever and whenever you are listening to your podcast, we are so glad that you decided to join us today. So you're investing in real estate. With your self-directed IRA.

Questions I get all the time: am I going to be able to do all of this with cash, or do I have to do all of this with cash? Kyle, what happens if I'm working on a fix and flip or a piece of real estate only to find out that I might need some extra funds out there to take care of the upfitting and maintenance or the overall rehab of this property? Well, you are in luck if you are joining us today because we are pairing up with Susie Balda of RehabWallet, and Susie's going to tell you what it's like to invest in real estate with your self-directed IRA, what you can expect, and how you can fund that project, and why and how RehabWallet is going to be a great resource for you to reach your investment objectives. So without further ado, I want to bring Susie on. Susie and I met at a Triad REIA, which is a Real Estate Investors Association meeting, and that was about a year ago. And I get to see her a lot at our main association meetings and our lunch and And the reason that I bring this up is because if you are one of our clients, if you're thinking about being one of our clients, and quite honestly, if you are getting into investing in general and you want to find the right groups, the right, uh, people, if you want to develop the right relationships, uh, to help you in your investing journey, you want to find one of these REIA meetings wherever you are, because it's all about the people there, the connections you make, and how you can network. And no more evidence, uh, is out there than the two of us on your screen or on your speakers right now. Because that chance meeting and that relationship has developed into this podcast that we are sitting on right now. So find one wherever you are, and you're actually getting ready to see the power of it with the knowledge that you're going to gain from Susie that she's going to bring. So Susie, welcome, and tell us a little bit about yourself.

Kyle, thank you so much for this opportunity. Yes, I have been a lender for a little bit over 3 years. Started with RehabWallet, who's a company based out of Charleston, South Carolina. But prior to lending, I was an investor myself. I do buy and holds of a couple properties since 2021. Spent most of my career, believe it or not, in retail management. So I did human resources and operations for a lot of large big box retailers. And then a peer of mine— you talk a lot about the power of relationship building— a peer of mine actually had one of those roles, brought me over to RehabWallet.

So spent a couple of years trying to recruit me, and then I thought, you know, let's give it a go. And I love it here. I love the opportunity that we have to build great relationships with our borrowers We consider them family very much. We consider their success our success. This isn't a transaction for us. We are on purpose very regional located. We are not going to find us nationwide. We even have a fairly small team within our organization, but we take a lot of pride in what we do and the relationships that we build with our borrowers.

Well, fantastic. And you talked about how that one relationship led you into RehabWallet and really that tight-knit group that you have. I'm always catching you guys on your Facebook feed or anything else out there on social media. It's like, man, every time I turn around, they are just absolutely being an absolute dynamic team. So give us a little bit of the history of RehabWallet itself, and, you know, if you want to highlight some of your team there, love to be able to hear it.

Absolutely. So we started about 5 and a half years ago, actually 6 years, it'll be this June. Our managing partner, Kelly Garrett, was an investor, fix and flip investor herself out of the Carolinas for almost 20 years. And after doing that for so long, she decided, you know what, let me go into coaching and let me start lending some of my own money to some investors that she had the opportunity to support. And collectively she met Angela Dunn, who, long story short, they actually used to be co-captains of the basketball team back in college, and now they work together back again. So doing great things. But we do, we have a fairly small team. Most of our team members, I think there may be one that is currently not an investor, whether they do buy and holds or fix and flip themselves.

But you've got a lot of experience. Everybody within our team was hand-selected, recruited, stolen from another organization because we really build a dynamic team and we take a lot of pride in that. It's not about all of our egos. It's really about what we can bring and help support for our borrowers.

No, that's great. That's great there. And I spent a lot of time on the site and I've always listened to Susie give great presentations in some of these meetings that we've all been in. And there is a lot of excitement around that team and around that company. So if this is something that you are looking to do, then, you know, you're really encouraged to look them up. So tell us a little bit about why borrowers choose RehabWallet. I mean, you just talked about it, you're not everywhere. It hasn't been around for a long time, but you guys are really dynamic.

So tell us how folks are finding you and why, why you're the, the choice.

Yes, absolutely. So we have an 85% return borrower rate. Most of the time when a borrower does a first loan with us, they appreciate a lot of the communication. We're very quick to answer the phone, answer an email. We show up to the closing table with the funds that they need to get that deal funded. Speed is our middle name, so we love to be able to provide funding quickly. We eliminate a lot of that red tape that a lot of the other borrowers, other lenders have. We don't pull credit, we don't do income verification.

We are truly a short-term asset-based lender. So if the deal makes sense, we're going to get it closed. Now, on the flip side, the reason why our borrowers appreciate so much is because if the deal doesn't make sense, if the rehab is a lot more than perhaps anticipated, There has been times that we have gone to our borrowers and reviewed that scope of work, reviewed the amount of work they wanted to do, and helped them recognize that this is probably not going to be a great deal for them. So we either help them make some adjustments or we help them walk away. And sometimes those deals that you do walk away are the ones that you're going to win. And most certainly remember to win on the next one. So not every deal is a deal, but the numbers have to work up front. Front.

We want and encourage our borrowers to be successful and make, you know, their profit at the beginning and not just count on the tail end. So many different factors at the end that could potentially impact that, whether it's, you know, your subs or delays for whatever reason. We want to make sure that they're able to make their profit at the beginning.

And it sounds too like It's not a— it's not a one. It doesn't seem like it's a cookie cutter or a perfect mold of something. Are there different types of products or loans that someone can obtain from RehabWallet?

Yes, absolutely. We work with both brand new investors as well as experienced, those that are looking to scale or do— move into the commercial space. We don't, you know, because we're a hard money lender, we do our own in-house underwriting. And I can't tell you how many times a month we will take a deal and fund it that every other lender said no to. And I think the advantage of that is the fact that all of us are investors and we understand and we can evaluate a deal a little bit different that another lender cannot. So You know, on average, we're probably saving 7 to 10 deals that we close on a month just because everybody else said absolutely not, they're not funding it, and we would gladly do it.

You know, and that actually leads me into something as you were talking about that, if you wouldn't mind expanding a little bit, you know, maybe what sets lending from RehabWallet apart from more traditional type of bank lending?

Yes. So your traditional lenders are going to require a lot of documents, always an appraisal. You're looking at closing timelines of 30 to 45 days is probably your typical. Your private money lenders or your hard money lenders, we can kind of bypass some of those things. We don't need a lot of documentation really for pre-approval with us. We need front copy of your driver's license. LLC documents. If you're experienced and you get better terms, we want to know those properties that you're invested.

That's it. Then within 24 hours, you get a preapproval. You can go ahead and negotiate with approval funds with that agent or that wholesaler, depending on who you're using for your acquisitions. So it's that streamlined process that our borrowers, especially those that are moving quickly, most certainly appreciate. I can't tell you how many times I get— I meet a new investor and they say, Susie, I'll send you the file that I sent my last lender. And when I look at that file, it has W-2s, it has bank statements, it has— I mean, it has so much stuff. And I'm like, I don't need any of that. I need your experience.

I need the front copy of your driver's license. You can tell me where you're going to provide funding for your cash to close. Then we're good to go. We're good. Look, let's go find that deal. So, you know, we have loan programs that truly do fit that investor. We work with first-timers, we work with those that are looking to scale truly a fix and flip if that's their exit strategy. We don't offer a DSCR loan program today, but again, we can help our borrowers with the acquisition and the rehab.

We have brand new now, probably our hottest item is our land and manufactured or modular home loan program. We've had this for probably about 6 months, and it is probably one of our most popular loan programs out there because we're the only lender that offers raw land purchase plus brand new manufactured or modular home plus the construction cost all built into one loan. We're the only lender right now out there that is able to offer this. So it's really exciting as an investor eliminate all those headaches of a fix and flip, and they're able to go into this loan program and exit much quicker and repeat the process.

Now, come on, Susie, you guys have been in the game for just a few minutes compared to maybe some of these other companies and banks out there who've been doing it for, for decades. And you're saying you're the only lender out there right now that can make this entire land home package deal a possibility. How, how is that? How did you guys do that?

We, we listen to our borrowers. We, like I mentioned, our borrowers are our family. We cater to them and what they want, what they're looking for, ways that they're looking to invest. We make that funding possible for them.

Now, that's, that's great. And, you know, as I'm sitting here thinking, of course, you know, I'm the representative of a self-directed IRA company where our listeners, most of our listeners more than likely, and especially folks who show up to the REIA meetings and those who are doing real estate investing, probably doing some private lending of their own. One thing that they might be thinking is, oh gosh, you know, she's talking about this and, and, you know, looking at the credit, looking at some of these other packets and everything. And any investor using a self-directed IRA, or if you have not done it yet, if you're out there listening and you're thinking that you have to invest 100% in cash. Number one, you do not. You can absolutely leverage your deal with a loan inside of your IRA. However, there is only one type of loan that you can get, and that's a non-recourse loan, which basically means, means that you are not the self-guarantor of the loan. It's not about you because remember, you don't own that property.

Your retirement account does. And because of that, anyone who's doing loans on these types of properties and these types of accounts The lender and all parties agree that really the only remedy a lender has is to take back the property itself. They can't come back on the borrower or the retirement account to make themselves whole. And one thing that I think all of you are going to enjoy hearing is not just what Suzie has built up to about the borrowers that they service right now, but for self-directed IRA borrowers, guess what? They also do non-recourse loans. Can you tell us a little bit about that? Does that change the pricing any, Suzie?

It does not. We fund up to 70% of the after-repair value. So a lot of times our borrowers think that they don't need necessarily funds, and this is where your team truly does help because on an average loan of $150,000, you're looking at anywhere between $22,000 to $35,000 cash to close between down payments, origination fee, insurance, attorney fees, and, Sometimes our investors don't consider that upfront. We also have monthly interest-only payments that they most certainly need to make with us. So it all, it just all wraps up nicely.

How many clients do you think you have right now under your umbrella that you guys have helped over the past few years?

We have funded over 2,500 loans within the last 5 and a half years, first First year and two, we only had two team members, two employees, so it was a little bit slow. Last year we successfully funded almost $137 million. So we most certainly want to be able to support our borrowers and help them become and scale even at a bigger, bigger, bigger scope.

Now, that is absolutely awesome. It's so great to hear that. Tell our self-directed IRA listeners, really, if, if this is going to be something new to them, if they wanted to give you a call, just something— and I know we've kind of talked about it in generalities, but somebody gives you a call, they just want to lay something out. Tell us what they can expect about maybe going on this type of investment journey using their account.

Sure. So really, if you just go to our website, you can schedule an introductory call with any one of us. Those are absolutely free. We don't charge for any of education or being able to provide guidance for someone on how to get started. If you're just looking to get pre-approved, a lot of times our borrowers don't have a deal yet. They really don't understand how, you know, how the structure of the loan or the process. We take a lot of pride in taking them through an onboarding program with us. It's a very short video.

That we record that just helps answer a lot of their questions. But you can do that all through our website just to connect with us. Normally we allocate 30 minutes so that we're able to answer any questions, but really get to know and build a relationship with that potential new borrower.

Are there certain assets that you're looking at more than others? Is it all about the fix and flip? Can it also be the buy and hold?

Yes, absolutely. It could be single-family, it could be 1 to 4 units, it could be, you know, duplexes, it could be commercial properties. We most certainly can provide regardless of your exit. If it's a true fix and flip, some of our borrowers have had to pivot and change their exit strategy based on the days on the market today. So they've had to, you know, convert it to a buy and hold. While we don't provide a DSCR loan option, we do have a sister company that does. Or we can most certainly guide them to another lender. There are some different guidelines that our sister company has.

For example, we don't have an appraisal, we don't pull credit. Most long-term lenders will.

Sounds like at RehabWallet that one way or the other, an answer is going to be found. And sometimes if that answer is no to something, you're going to help them locate what they can do with the property or where to get the funds. And sometimes, as you said early on, that no is what brings them back for the other yeses there in the future. So that's really cool. Again, you folks, I can't say enough about Suzie. I almost think she's cloned. I mean, I see one of her on the screen right now. But if you honestly knew all the places that she pops up weekly, it's like, I just heard you at somewhere else and now you're here.

And so if the rest of her team in that company is as dynamic as she is and can make it happen in person. I shudder to think what it would be like behind the scenes when they're taking care of folks and their loans, their, their funds and their files. So, you know, you were talking about the consultation. Someone can go online, they can do some research, they can schedule a call. But it also sounds to that there's, there's that eternal client service and maybe it's not even client. I mean, it's almost, you know, once they come in, they're family. So it's like that, that family service they're getting for you. It's not just the initial call, it's not after the note is done.

This person might be coming back. So they do benefit from what seems to be a good client service team.

Yes, absolutely. And again, all of us— and it's part of their onboarding— all of us will share our email, direct email, and our phone numbers. We take a lot of pride You know, sometimes you don't know what questions to ask until you run into certain scenarios or as you get ready to close your first loan, a lot of questions may pop up and you just want someone friendly that can answer the phone first and then, you know, to not make you feel that you just asked a really dumb question. There's really no such thing. It's all a learning process and a learning opportunity. So we all take a lot of pride in being able to just be there, be there to be, to answer questions or answer that email at the speed of our investors.

You know, Susie, there's going to be listeners that we have out there. They're, they're not right here where we are, uh, in the Triad, uh, or in the part of the Carolinas. They may be a few states away, they may be half the country away. One of the things you always— the folks hear me, uh, say is, uh, welcome to wherever and whenever you're listening listening to us because we all might be on the East Coast, but somebody is also picking up our transmission over in California as well. You mentioned earlier that you're not everywhere. It is kind of that boutique feel. But what are the parameters if somebody did want to reach out to you and they're not, say, close by in area proximity? Are there just certain— is there a radius that you only consider or work inside of, or is— how far out will you go?

So there's most certainly a couple states that we do lend in: Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee. However, what we've learned is a lot of our investors live elsewhere, but they invest in certain states. So we don't require our investors to live in our backyard. We just require the property that we're going to fun to be in the lending states.

But that's a great question. Yeah, that's, that's some great information right there. So folks, this may be right up your alley. I think that, you know, we even have our own clients that they have properties outside of their IRA, they've got properties on the inside of their IRA. And what it sounds like you're going to benefit from is that RehabWallet will take care of both of those. Well, Susie, any parting words that you have for our listeners today before we go ahead and sign off and let everyone get back on with their day and week?

You know, the only thing and advice that I have for anyone looking to get started is funding is really not a reason to not get started. There are resources out there and you just have to take that first step and get going. So you don't know what you're going to learn until you take that first step. So don't get stuck in that analysis paralysis.

Absolutely. Great point there. Well, Susie, thank you so much for coming on the Cafe today and joining us and sharing your knowledge of your history and the really the backbone of RehabWallet. I think it's going to be a great product for someone to use in their investing toolbox. For all of you out there who have joined us once again, always make sure to tune in And you can visit us at americanira.com. You're always going to be able to listen to the podcast. You know, it doesn't just have to be this one time. You can always go back and find us on YouTube and any of your social media outlets.

So until we meet again here inside the cafe, I am Kyle Moody with American IRA, and we look forward to seeing you next time.

American IRA, LLC, a North Carolina LLC. Acts as a third-party administrator for New Vision Trust Company, a state-chartered South Dakota trust company. As a neutral self-directed IRA administrator, American IRA does not recommend or endorse any investments, individuals, or entities, including financial representatives, promoters, or companies. American IRA and the IRA Cafe are not responsible for others' statements, representations, or agreements, nor do we evaluate the quality or profitability of any investment. American IRA does not endorse guests on the IRA Cafe podcast. Guest opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of American IRA, its subsidiaries, associates, or custodian. Participation in the podcast is voluntary and no compensation is provided. American IRA is not a fiduciary and cannot offer financial advice.

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