EMD
The Seller Wanted the EMD Directly
An investor said a seller wanted the earnest money deposit paid directly to the seller by cash or bank transfer rather than being held by a title company. The investor stopped and asked the community whether that was a red flag.
What happened: Other investors strongly recommended using a neutral title or escrow company to hold the deposit. The original poster later said the seller had a bad prior experience with wholesalers and they were still discussing the reason for the request.
The lesson: EMD is not just about coming up with the money. Where it is held, when it becomes non-refundable, and what the contract says all matter.
Double Close
When a $78K Assignment Fee Became the Problem
A wholesaler reported that an end buyer was happy with a deal until the buyer learned the wholesaler was making a $78,000 assignment fee.
What happened: According to the wholesaler, the buyer caused that deal to fall apart. The investor said the experience pushed their team to double close many larger-spread deals instead of exposing the assignment fee.
The lesson: A double close can be about more than funding the A-B purchase. For some investors, it is also a way to keep the A-B and B-C transactions separate when the spread is large.
Lender-published case studyEMD Funding
$1.25 Million Tied Up in EMD?
Duckfund published a case study involving one affordable-housing developer pursuing four acquisitions with a combined purchase price of $65.2 million.
What happened: The four deals required a combined $1.25 million in earnest money deposits. Duckfund says it financed the deposits so the developer could preserve liquidity while the deals moved through 30- to 60-day due-diligence periods.
The lesson: EMD funding is not always about an investor lacking cash. It can also be a capital-management tool that keeps cash available for other deals and expenses.
Title + Funding
Funding Fell Apart 48 Hours Before Closing
A wholesaler described a Phoenix duplex that was supposed to be a double close. Two days before closing, the title company would not handle the same-day structure and the planned transactional funding fell through.
What happened: The wholesaler said they called the end buyer, disclosed an $18,500 assignment fee, changed the structure to an assignment, and the buyer closed six days later.
The lesson: Confirm the title company, funding structure, contracts, and timing early. A profitable deal can still fail if the closing mechanics are not lined up—and a Plan B can matter.
Lender-published testimonialSpeed
When Time Became the Problem
KP Close publishes a testimonial from a customer identified as Lisa M. who said her seller was getting impatient while traditional financing was taking too long.
What happened: According to the testimonial, she contacted the lender Monday morning, was approved Tuesday, the money was wired Wednesday, and the deal closed 38 hours after the first call.
The lesson: Sometimes the problem is not finding the deal or the buyer. It is getting capital to the closing table fast enough.
Lender-published testimonialBackup Funding
The Lender Backed Out 24 Hours Before Closing
3AM Capital publishes a testimonial from a Phoenix wholesaler who said their original lender backed out the day before closing on a deal involving a $65,000 assignment.
What happened: The testimonial says the wholesaler contacted 3AM that evening and the replacement wire was confirmed by the next morning.
The lesson: A backup funding relationship can be valuable before an emergency happens. The closer you get to closing, the fewer options you usually want to be discovering for the first time.
Lender-reported funded dealLarge Double Close
27 Properties and a $1M+ A-B Closing
Trinity Transactional Funding lists an anonymized Mississippi 27-property portfolio among its recent funded double closes.
What happened: Trinity reports an A-B purchase of $1,073,160 and a B-C resale of $1,550,000, a gross spread of $476,840 before fees and expenses. The lender says the transaction was funded in seven days.
The lesson: The bigger the deal, the bigger the temporary funding gap can be. Having the exit buyer is only part of the job—the A-B purchase still has to get funded and closed correctly.
Double Close
$227K In. $280K Out. But the A-B Had to Fund First.
An investor posted about a scheduled double close with a $227,000 A-B purchase and a $280,000 B-C resale.
What happened: The investor said the title company required the A-B transaction to be fully funded and closed before it would allow the end buyer to fund the second transaction, even though both could occur the same day.
The lesson: Never assume the B-C buyer's money can automatically fund the A-B closing. Ask the title company how it handles double closes and what money must be in escrow first.
First Deal
His First Deal Was a Double Close
In a discussion about how a new wholesaler could fund the short gap between an A-B purchase and B-C resale, one investor shared that their first deal was a double close.
What happened: The investor said they used Straightline Funding for transactional funding and Stewart Title for the closing.
The lesson: A double close can sound complicated at first, but the moving pieces become easier to understand when the title company and funding source are lined up before closing.
Fix & Flip
The Solar Panel Surprise
An investor said they bought a property to renovate and resell after being told there were no outstanding solar loans or liens. Three months later, they discovered the solar panels were leased and the prior owners had reportedly stopped making payments.
What happened: The investor said the title search had not identified the lease, and the solar company later left a default notice at the property. The investor then had to sort out the solar agreement before reselling the home.
The lesson: A title search does not always answer who owns equipment attached to a property. Before buying a property with solar, verify whether the panels are owned, financed, leased, or subject to a power-purchase agreement, and review the documents.
Reported fraud caseClosing Security
Fraud Alert: One Tiny Email Change Redirected $38,805
A Florida couple preparing to close on a home received wiring instructions that appeared to come from their closing firm. According to police records reported by News 6, the fake email address used “.co” instead of the legitimate “.com” domain.
What happened: The couple wired $38,805.17 to the fraudulent account. Investigators later traced the transfer to a North Carolina bank account. A suspect was arrested in 2026 and has pleaded not guilty; the criminal case was still pending when the story was reported.
The lesson: Never rely only on emailed wiring instructions. Verify wire information using a trusted phone number you obtained independently, especially if instructions change at the last minute.
Industry professional accountForeclosure + Title
The Money Was Sent — But the Property Still Went to Foreclosure
Title and escrow professional Ash Selle described a complicated transaction involving a distressed property, several wholesalers, and a foreclosure deadline.
What happened: According to Selle's account, money intended to reinstate the loan was rejected, the auction deadline was missed, and the property went to sheriff's sale. She said the end buyer lost money and multiple parties ended up in lawsuits.
The lesson: Having money available is only one piece of a closing. On foreclosure-sensitive deals, confirm deadlines, reinstatement instructions, who will accept the funds, and whether the title team knows how to handle the transaction before the clock runs out.