Hard money gets all the attention in investor conversations, but it solves a different problem than the one a wholesaler or a same-day flipper actually has. If you're buying a house in the morning and reselling it that same afternoon, you don't need a loan that sits on the property for six months — you need money for a few hours, sometimes less. That's transactional funding, and it works differently from every other financing tool investors in Louisville use.
What transactional funding actually is
Transactional funding — sometimes called flash funding or AB-BC funding — covers the "A to B" leg of a double close, where you buy a property from the original seller (A) and resell it to your end buyer (C) within the same day, sometimes within the same hour. The lender funds the A-to-B purchase, that deed records, and then moments later the B-to-C sale closes and the lender gets repaid out of those proceeds — often before their money has been in play for even a full business day.
It's built for one specific situation: you have a locked-in resale buyer already lined up, and you need capital to legally take title (even briefly) before you can convey the property to them. No appraisal, no credit check, no income verification — the lender is underwriting the spread between your two contracts, not you.
At a glance: transactional funding versus hard money
Hard money is built to hold a property for weeks or months while you rehab it, lease it up, or wait on a refinance — see our full hard money loans guide for how that pricing and underwriting works. Transactional funding is built to hold a property for hours. Hard money lenders care about the property's after-repair value and your exit plan; transactional funders care almost entirely about whether your B-to-C sale is real, documented, and ready to close same-day. Hard money typically costs several points plus a double-digit interest rate charged over the life of the loan; transactional funding charges a flat fee for the use of the money — often somewhere in the low-to-mid single-digit thousands of dollars depending on the purchase price and the lender — regardless of whether you hold the funds for two hours or two days, because the pricing is built around a brief hold, not a long one.
If you're planning to actually keep the property — rehab it, rent it, refinance it — you want hard money or a DSCR loan, not transactional funding. If you're assigning or double-closing a contract you never intend to hold, transactional funding is the tool built for exactly that.
Why wholesalers use a double close instead of a straight assignment
An assignment of contract — where you simply sell your right to buy the property to another investor for a fee — is simpler and cheaper when it's available. But it doesn't always work. Some sellers' contracts, or the title company handling the file, won't allow assignment language. Some end buyers don't want the original seller to see exactly how much profit is being made on the spread (an assignment fee shows up in the paperwork; a double close's resale price doesn't reveal your purchase price to the seller, or your purchase price to the buyer). And some deals involve a seller who would simply refuse to sell if they knew the property was being resold same-day for more. A double close solves all three problems by making two separate, fully closed transactions instead of one assignment — which is exactly why it needs its own source of purchase-side funds.
What it actually costs
Pricing varies by lender, but transactional funders typically charge a flat fee rather than an interest rate, because the hold period is measured in hours, not months. On a mid-size Louisville deal — say a $150,000 to $200,000 purchase price — that flat fee commonly lands somewhere between $1,500 and $3,000, though some lenders set a minimum fee or a percentage of the loan amount, whichever is greater. A few also charge a small document or underwriting fee on top. The number that matters most before you commit to this structure: does the spread between your A-to-B price and your B-to-C price comfortably cover the funding fee, your closing costs on both legs, and your actual profit — with room left over if something about the timing slips.
What it does not typically require, which is the entire point: no appraisal, no income documentation, no credit pull in most cases, and no months-long underwriting process. The underwriting question is simply whether both contracts are real, both closings are scheduled with a title company or attorney capable of handling a same-day double close, and the numbers actually work.
How a double close actually works, step by step
You have a signed purchase contract with the original seller (the A-to-B contract) and a signed resale contract with your end buyer (the B-to-C contract), ideally at a price that was negotiated and locked in before you ever need the funding. You line up a title company or closing attorney in the Louisville area who has handled back-to-back double closings before — not every one has, and this is worth confirming up front rather than discovering it the morning of closing. You apply with a transactional funder, typically a day or two ahead of the scheduled closing, providing both contracts, proof of the end buyer's funds or financing, and the title company's contact information so the lender can coordinate directly with them. On closing day, the A-to-B transaction closes first and the deed to you (or your assignee entity) records. Almost immediately after — sometimes the same morning, sometimes a few hours later — the B-to-C transaction closes using your end buyer's funds, and that money pays off the transactional lender along with the title company's fees, leaving your profit on the spread.
The entire structure depends on both closings happening close together and the title company being comfortable handling the sequence. If the B-to-C closing slips by days rather than hours, most transactional lenders either charge an extended-hold fee or decline to fund the deal at all — this isn't financing meant to carry any real risk of delay.
Kentucky-specific closing mechanics worth knowing
Kentucky closings run through title companies and closing attorneys rather than the escrow-company model used in some other states, and not every title office is set up to run two back-to-back closings against the same property in one day without friction. Confirm this specifically — "have you handled a double close before?" — rather than assuming any title company can do it on short notice. Recording timing matters too: Jefferson County's deed recording has to actually process the A-to-B deed before the B-to-C closing is truly clean, so coordinating with the title company on exact timing (not just the date) is part of making this work smoothly rather than anxiously.
It's also worth telling your transactional funder and your title company, plainly, that this is a double close from the start. Trying to hide the structure from the title company handling both legs is both unnecessary — double closes are a completely legal, well-understood transaction structure — and a good way to end up with a closer who isn't prepared for it.
Mistakes that turn a profitable spread into a loss
Lining up transactional funding before the resale contract is actually signed, then having the end buyer back out or renegotiate once they realize you're relying on same-day financing to close. Underestimating the combined cost of the funding fee plus two full sets of closing costs — title insurance, recording fees, and closing fees on both legs add up fast on a structure built around a thin spread. Working with a title company that's never run a double close and discovering that on closing morning instead of a week ahead of time. And treating transactional funding like a financing solution for a deal you actually want to keep — if there's any real chance you'll end up holding the property, this is the wrong tool; a bridge or hard money loan sized for an actual hold period is the right one.
Where Winner Realty fits
Through Winner Commercial, we work with investors across Louisville and Southern Indiana structuring exactly these kinds of fast-turn deals — sourcing the acquisition, lining up the resale buyer, and connecting the funding and title pieces so the double close actually happens on schedule. If you're earlier in the process and still sourcing deals, our guide to probate and pre-foreclosure leads covers where this kind of inventory tends to come from in Jefferson County, and our BRRRR method guide covers the hold-and-refinance alternative when a deal is worth keeping instead of flipping.
Frequently asked questions
Is transactional funding the same thing as hard money?
No. Both are short-term, asset-based financing, but hard money is priced and underwritten for a hold measured in months; transactional funding is priced and underwritten for a hold measured in hours, used specifically to fund the first half of a double close.
Do I need a resale buyer already lined up to get transactional funding?
Yes. Transactional funders are underwriting the certainty of your B-to-C sale, not your creditworthiness. Without a signed resale contract and a title company ready to close it same-day, most lenders won't fund the A-to-B purchase at all.
Is a double close legal in Kentucky?
Yes. A double close is simply two separate, fully disclosed real estate closings happening close together — it's a well-established transaction structure, not a workaround. What matters is that both transactions are handled transparently with the title company and that each contract stands on its own.
What happens if my end buyer's closing gets delayed?
Most transactional lenders charge an extended-hold fee for each extra day their money is at risk, and some decline to extend at all if the delay runs more than a day or two. This is the single biggest risk in the structure, which is why confirming your end buyer's financing and the title company's readiness before you apply for funding matters more than almost anything else in the process.
What does a title company need to know ahead of time?
That this is a double close, both contract prices, the identity and funding source for both buyers, and ideally the transactional lender's contact information so the title company can coordinate disbursement timing directly. Confirming all of this at least a few days ahead of closing — not the morning of — is what keeps the sequence from stalling.
This article is for general information and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Transactional funding terms, fees, and underwriting vary by lender — confirm current terms directly before relying on this structure for a specific deal.