EMD Funding in Los Angeles, CA | Swift Deal Funding
How EMD Funding Works in Los Angeles, CA
EMD funding covers the earnest money deposit on your Los Angeles contract — typically $5,000 to $25,000 in this market — wired directly to your independent California escrow company, usually within 24 hours of a complete file. The deposit must be refundable under the contingency or inspection terms of the contract. You lock up the property without committing your own cash before you’ve found an end buyer or finished your numbers.
Los Angeles is a high-priced, fast-moving market with a median around $1,000,000. Inventory turns over on single-family homes in Sylmar and Watts, multifamily in Boyle Heights and Highland Park, and infill in Del Rey, where flippers and landlords compete hard. Deposits run toward the higher end here, so keeping your own capital free across several live contracts is what lets a wholesaler scale.
How it closes in Los Angeles (escrow state)
California closings run through an independent escrow company, which holds the earnest money. We wire the deposit straight to your LA escrow company once we have written confirmation it’s refundable per the CAR contract’s contingency period. California is also a dry-funding state — sale proceeds disburse only after the LA County deed records — but that affects the final close, not the deposit. Cancel within the contingency window and the deposit returns to the escrow company and back to us, documented and clean.
Pricing
Two fixed options on every EMD:
| Option | Upfront | At Close | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 5% of EMD (min $500) | 20% of EMD | High close-through rates |
| B | 10% of EMD (min $1,000) | 0% | Predictable per-deal cost (most popular) |
A typical $15,000 LA EMD under Option B costs $1,500 total — paid once, nothing at closing.
What you’ll need
- Executed purchase contract with refundable EMD language (typically the CAR Residential Purchase Agreement)
- LA escrow company contact information
- Written confirmation from escrow that the EMD is refundable per the contract
- Your ID
No credit check, income verification, or tax returns; California has no wholesaler-licensing statute.
A typical Los Angeles EMD scenario
You go under contract on a Boyle Heights duplex and the seller wants a $15,000 earnest money deposit. Rather than wire your own cash, you submit the contract and your escrow company’s details. Within 24 hours we wire $15,000 to your LA escrow company. Your contingency period protects the deposit while you assign the contract to a buy-and-hold investor. Under Option B your cost is a flat $1,500, and your capital stayed free for the next Sylmar deal.
Apply
Submit your contract and escrow company contact online — under 10 minutes. Same-day wire is possible for complete files in before 11 AM Eastern. We coordinate directly with your LA escrow company.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does earnest money go on a Los Angeles deal? +
California is an escrow state, so your earnest money is held by an independent escrow company, not an attorney or the title company directly. We wire the deposit — usually $5,000 to $25,000 in this market, sometimes more given LA prices — straight to your escrow company within 24 hours of a complete file and written confirmation the EMD is refundable. The deposit holds your contract while you finish due diligence or line up an end buyer in Sylmar, Boyle Heights, or Watts.
Does California's dry-funding rule affect EMD funding in Los Angeles? +
Not for the deposit itself. Dry-funding governs when sale proceeds disburse at closing — only after the LA County deed records — but earnest money is simply held against your contract during the inspection and contingency period. What matters for EMD funding is that the deposit is refundable under your CAR contract's contingency terms and the escrow company confirms it in writing. If you cancel within that window, the deposit returns from the LA escrow company back to us, with none of your own capital exposed.
Why do LA wholesalers use EMD funding? +
LA's median near $1,000,000 means sellers and agents often expect deposits at the higher end of the $5,000–$25,000 range, and tying up that much of your own cash on every contract kills your liquidity fast. EMD funding lets you put up a credible deposit on each deal — a Highland Park multifamily, a Del Rey teardown — without spending your own funds, and because an independent California escrow company holds the money, it's clean and documented. You pay a fixed per-deal cost and stay liquid for the next opportunity.
Apply for EMD Funding in Los Angeles, CA
Submit your application online — same-day decisions for complete files before 2 PM Eastern.