Time is money! The primary advantage is time. Typically, the borrowers can access these funds within just a few days. In real estate, many times an investor needs to move quickly and may not have time to wait for traditional funding sources, hard money could be that solution.
Another scenario that borrowers use hard money is that they have been turned down by banks or traditional lending institutions due to poor credit. These loans do come at a premium with higher interest rates and some fees which can make them more expensive in the long run.
Hard money loans are a great short-term solution for investors and folks with credit challenges that have the income to buy now with the long-term plan being to refinance to a traditional product with better terms for the consumer whenever possible.