Complaint Review: T. Guy Cook and Jim Woodruff of Maryland Private Lending

 Maryland Private Lending and their officers and agents, T. Guy Cook and Jim Woodruff, are in the business of making private money loans to real estate flippers and investors. However, their loans are made with extreemly high interest rates and clauses that hide the real truth about their business. It's a scam. Maryland Private Lending appears to make their loans in ways that enable them to take back property from investors, while ensuring the debt incurred in acquiring that property remains. As such, these crooks seek to not only take possession of a rehabilitated property, they intend for the borrower to to remain liable for the loan debt as well. Mr. T. Guy Cook apparently has learned that ignoring phone calls and avoiding customers isn't the best way to do business. Mr. Jim Woodruff, who is either Mr. Cook under an alias or, is his long-time partner in crime, now answers calls and emails. He simply advises that Maryland Private Lending isn't actually the Lender, and it's not Maryland Private Lending that's withholding your money, it's the fictitious company. Mr. Woodruff is always on the phone with that company when you contact him; your wire transfer is always in the process of being sent, and he is always going to send you and email with the confirmation number as soon as it happens. There is never an email, a confirmation number or a wire transfer. At a minimum, if you borrow from these people, you should expect to see a demand, at closing, from Maryland Private Lending for the entire amount borrowed, including the holdback. You will be expected to repay those funds from your Construction Holdback escrow account regardless of never having received them. Fail to fulfill the ridiculous demand and you'll be held in closing hell till you lose your buyer. They will be perfectly happy taking your loan interest payments until the ballon matures and you're forced to pay it off. You will have grounds for a law suit but, Mr. Cook and company have held other LLC's, which you can find on the Maryland Judiciary Case Search. You should expect that Maryland Lrivate Lending will evaporate into insolvency and leave you with additional damage, in the form of lawyers fees, for your trouble. Run! Do not walk. Business with these clowns is nothing more than a scam.