Private lending organization hopes to identify fraudsters in the commercial space
Mortgage fraud has been a major topic in the industry in 2025, especially in the multifamily space. From Fannie Mae to Cotality, organizations have been shining a light on potential fraud issues.
Now, one major organization is making its list and checking it twice. And like Santa’s list, you don’t want to end up on the naughty side of the list.
The National Private Lenders Association (NPLA) debuted its watch list on Monday, spotlighting bad actors in the private lending space. Members of the organization will have access to the list to be warned of potential fraudsters.
Jonathan Hornik (pictured top), founding member and owner of the NPLA, said months of hard work have resulted in a critical resource for the private lending sector.
“What we've done is we've created a database from all the largest credit providers in the space,” Hornik told Mortgage Professional America. “Those that purchase closed loans, those that give credit lines for the loans, because they all had internal data of both individuals, companies, professional companies that they wouldn't work with.”
Finding bad actors
Because the private lending space continues to grow, it will naturally attract more people interested in scamming others. Hornik said this list is a way to combat those bad actors.
“We figured that because the asset class has continued to become more in focus and continue to grow, what ends up happening is bad actors see an opportunity,” Hornik said. “So we wanted to create a database, which was protected, that our members can search as a due diligence tool to see, ‘Hey, should I be doing business with this company or individual?’
“If they've been flagged by one of the credit providers, go in with 100% review goggles on. It doesn't tell you not to do a deal. It goes, ‘Wait a minute. Somebody who's in the business of making money by buying or participating in these loans said regardless of our mandate to make money, I'm not doing business with them.’ So that's relevant.”
The watch list is a product more than a year in the making, mainly because they needed to make sure those providing the data for the list would be OK with how it was presented.
“It's been over a year and a half,” he said. “Because when we came up with the concept at the NPLA leadership level, it was designing it in a way that the data contributors would find acceptable. It was iteration after iteration. It was drafting the proper agreements with the proper indemnities, all important stuff. The good thing about it is that the need is there.”
Spotlighting the cockroaches
Hornik said one of the NPLA's essential roles is sharing information with its members to help make the entire private lending industry a better place.
“What the NPLA does best is it brings together competitors in an industry, business purpose lending, and allows them to share information without worrying that they're going to lose business,” he said. “It’s opening communication, so companies are coming in and sharing their experiences, good, bad and indifferent. The policies that they've changed make them better lenders, and the industry is getting better for it.”
Creating this watch list informs the entire industry about fraudsters in the space and helps keep others from falling victim to the same bad actors.
“The reality is these bad actors are not unique to one lender,” Hornik said. “If it beat one lender, it could beat 10 lenders. We’ve got to collectively come together. So I'm super excited about it. Our phones have been ringing off the hook with people like, ‘How do I get access?’ Well, the only way to get access is to become a member of the NPLA.
“We vet who becomes a member. We want real companies with the right mission statements that are trying to do private lending the right way. I don't want any shysters. The industry grew out of hard money lending, so you have that element. But we're really raising the profile. And I couldn't be happier.”
Matt Seguin, senior principal, fraud solutions at Cotality, said the areas of biggest concern continue to be on the commercial side.https://t.co/hCdNcNbxeK
— Mortgage Professional America Magazine (@MPAMagazineUS) November 18, 2025
As more bad actors in the space are identified, the list will continue to grow. Hornik is proud of the industry's commitment to rooting out fraudsters in the space, helping private lending continue to expand in 2026.
“We think it's going to continue to grow,” he said. “We think it's going to change the space and shine a flashlight on those areas where the cockroaches are. They can run, and we can stamp them out, so to speak.”
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