Why One Good Broker Beats 50 Borrowers in Private Lending with TJ Burns

Property Profits Real Estate Podcast · Nov 5, 2026 · 24m

TJ Burns found a wallet on the street, gave it back, and gained his first real estate partner. Today he runs a private lending fund that grows by serving loan brokers.

TJ spent 7 years as an engineer at Amazon. He was doing well by every measure, but he felt stuck. He calls it stagnation.

He moved into real estate, did over $20 million in deals with that first partner, then became a fund manager and finally an operator. He chose private lending because it scales across markets in a way multifamily does not.

TJ breaks down the three kinds of fix and flip lenders, and why his fund sits in the…