Raising Capital by Alignment and Trust: Lessons from Tim Herriage on Building Investor-Centric Lending

On Accredited Investors Only, host Peter Neill sits down with Tim Herriage, Marine Corps veteran turned serial entrepreneur, to unpack how to raise capital and build a lending business that actually serves investors. Tim shares the playbook he learned flipping nearly 2,000 houses, scaling national platforms with institutional partners, and now launching Ternus to put Main Street investors back in control.

From Marine Corps to Main Street: A quick sketch of experience

Tim’s path is a mix of boots-on-the-ground real estate experience and institutional finance. He started in construction, moved into flipping and wholesaling, scaled an office network for national investor brands, launched a trade show business that drew private equity interest, and helped build B2R Finance—eventually merging it with a public company. Today, his focus is running Ternus, a customer-first private lending platform built around speed, transparency, accountability, respect, and service.

Core advantage: speed, certainty, and service

In markets where deals live and die on timing, Tim emphasizes that speed and transparency are not marketing tags but product features. Ternus aims to be:

• Fast — some closings for first-time customers have happened in two business days; the typical turn is five to seven business days.
• Certain — underwriting focuses on whether a borrower can finish the project, not on unnecessary appraisal or credit hurdles.
• Service-oriented — the company intentionally chooses customers it can help win, minimizing foreclosures and maximizing successful outcomes.

How underwriting is different—and why it matters

Tim’s underwriting principle: “loan the way you buy.” If an experienced investor can make a purchase decision from pictures and comparables, a lender should be able to make a loan decision from clear financials and a renovation inspection. That means less reliance on appraisals and credit reports when the borrower’s ability to complete the renovation and the project scope are well documented.

Product set highlights:

• Short-term bridge financing for single-family fix-and-flip projects.
• 30-year DSCR rental loans for long-term hold investors, closed in roughly 14 days versus industry averages of 24–28 days.
• Note origination and sales—Ternus funds loans and also sells or services notes for outside investors.

Raising capital differently: alignment, storytelling, and track record

Two themes run through Tim’s capital-raising approach:

1. Alignment with customers — raise capital from people who are also customers. When investors own a piece of the company, their incentives line up with management in the long run.
2. Clarity and storytelling over complicated structures — many accredited investors want a simple answer to three questions: What’s my return, how long will you keep my money, and how do I get it back? Keep the product straightforward and communicate plainly.

To scale, Tim is using a mix of strategies: a crowdfunding equity offering aimed at customers and followers, a short-term cash flow debt fund for accredited investors who want liquidity and yield, and organic community building through social channels and email lists. A simple testing-the-waters post generated millions in reservations before the offering even launched—proof that trust and a documented track record move capital.

On the value of a documented track record

Tim stresses that a track record is the one thing you cannot buy or retroactively create. Document it. Share it. Use it as the foundation of any capital raise. Investors want to know you’ve done it before and can do it again.

“What will make you successful in this environment is identifying your mistakes, owning your mistakes, and stopping them.”

Hard lessons from Wall Street that matter for startups

Working with institutional capital taught Tim two key lessons:

• You must be able to ask for capital, spend it intelligently, and learn fast. Institutions prefer you to test ideas even if you fail fast.
• Design processes that let you identify mistakes and stop them quickly; being wrong a portion of the time is expected, but correcting course matters most.

Debt fund versus equity ownership: who should invest in what

Two clear vehicles appeal to different investor priorities:

• Debt funds — best for investors seeking short-term cash flow and liquidity. They are often simpler, with preferred returns and priority on repayment, but limited upside.
• Equity (crowdfunded ownership) — for investors who want ownership, participation in company growth, and long-term alignment. Equity holders share upside if the platform becomes more valuable, regardless of how loans perform in isolation.

Tim’s view: offer both so investors can choose the exposure that matches their goals—cash flow today, or equity upside through ownership and alignment.

Market view and strategy for uncertain times

Tim expects continued headwinds in housing and debt markets through 2025, driven by affordability constraints and the lagged effects of rising rates. But that creates an opportunity to build systems and capture market share when the cycle turns. His practical moves include:

• Buying and selling hard money notes instead of piling into complicated, illiquid syndications that have struggled to refinance.
• Shifting away from high-friction short-term rentals toward more scalable commercial and long-term assets.
• Structuring short-duration loan products and funds (example: six-month notes with 30-day withdrawal windows) to match investor liquidity needs.

Practical takeaways for investors and operators

1. Document your track record. You cannot recreate a lost reputation; share wins and failures with clarity so prospective investors can evaluate you.
2. Prioritize speed and certainty. Faster closings and transparent underwriting win deals and attract repeat customers.
3. Keep investor products simple. Many accredited investors want plain answers about return, term, and liquidity—don’t bury them in complexity.
4. Raise capital from your community when possible. Customers who own part of the firm are aligned supporters and provide a durable capital base.
5. Build systems during downturns. When competition pulls back, operational discipline and refined processes create an advantage when the market recovers.

How to get involved

For accredited investors interested in cash-flow products, short-term notes, or participating in an aligned equity offering, Ternus is packaging a mix of solutions: a cash flow debt fund, 30-year DSCR rental loans, and a crowdfunded equity offering designed to put customers and investors on the same side of the table. Interested parties are encouraged to research fund terms carefully, review track record documentation, and choose the structure that fits their liquidity and return objectives.

Final thought

Capital is available to those who can build trust, tell a clear story, and deliver certainty. Whether you are an active operator needing bridge capital or an accredited investor seeking cash flow and alignment, the path forward is defined by simplicity, speed, and shared incentives. In uncertain markets, those three qualities become a durable competitive advantage.