Monthly Archives: September 2018

Tips to qualify for a Construction Loan

Banks and mortgage lenders are often leery of construction loans for many reasons. One major issue is that you need to place a lot of trust in the builder. The bank or lender is lending money for something that is to be constructed, with the assumption that it will have a certain value when it is finished.

 

  1. A Qualified Builder Must Be Involved. A qualified builder is a licensed general contractor with an established reputation for building quality homes. This means that you may have an especially hard time finding an institution to finance your project if you are intending to act as your own general contractor, or if you are involved in an owner/builder situation.
  2. The Lender Needs Detailed Specifications. This includes floor plans, as well as details about the materials that are going to be used in the home. Builders often put together a comprehensive list of all details (sometimes called the “blue book”); details generally include everything from ceiling heights to the type of home insulation to be used.
  3. The Home Value Must Be Estimated by an Appraiser. Although it can seem difficult to appraise something that doesn’t exist, the lender must have an appraiser consider the blue book and specs of the house, as well as the value of the land that the home is being built on. These calculations are then compared to other similar houses with similar locations, similar features, and similar size. These other houses are called “comps,” and an appraised value is determined based on the comps.
  4. You Will Need to Put Down a Large Down Payment. Typically, 20% is the minimum you need to put down for a construction loan – some lenders require as much as 25% down. This ensures that you are invested in the project and won’t just walk away if things go wrong. This also protects the bank or lender in case the house doesn’t turn out to be worth as much as they expected.

 


Private Hard Money Lenders – Choose the One, Which Suits You Best!

I want to talk about the core difference between private and institutional lenders. An institution is basically a bank or a credit union, which provides funding for different stuff.

On the other hand, private is more about a bunch of people, who works under a private organization, which works towards helping people buying and selling good deals by providing financing. They are not held by government or any other regional organization but they work by themselves and use their own money.

Now, we come down to two basic types of lenders in the world of real estate:

1. Institutional lenders

These are the hard money lenders, who are a part of a bank or any other federal organization and they work with them. Although, it is quite difficult to get a loan from them because they look at lots of things including the borrower’s credit history, job, bank statements etc.

These are only stuffs that institutional hard money lenders are concerned about. They don’t have a real estate background, that’s why; they don’t care much about the worth of a property. Even, if you have a good deal, they won’t lend you unless your credit or job history is satisfactory.

There’s a huge gap between institutional lenders and real estate investors, which isn’t easy to fill.

2. Private hard money lenders

Private money lenders are usually real estate investors and therefore, they understand the needs and demands of a borrower. They aren’t regulated by any federal body and that’s why, they have their own lending criteria, which are based upon their own real estate understandings.

Their main concern is property and not the borrower’s credit history or bank statement. The motto of private hard money lenders is simple: If you have a good deal in hand, they will fund you, no matter what. But if you take a crap deal to them, then they won’t fund you, even if you have excellent credit history because they believe that if you’ll make money, then only they would be able to make profit.

If you have found a hard money lender but he or she hasn’t got any experience in real estate investment, then they won’t be able to understand your deal. They will always think like a banker.

A true private money lender is one, who can help you in evaluating the deal and giving you a proper direction and funding if you find a good deal. But if the deal is bad, they will tell you straight away. Before rehabbing a property, they know what would be its resale value, due to their extensive experience.

The basic difference between institutional hard money lenders and private hard money lenders is that the institutional lenders try to have everything in place and perfect order. They want to have all the figures and the amount of profit they would be making. They completely ignore the main asset, i.e. the property.

Whereas, private money lenders use their own fund and experience to realize what’s store for them. They don’t try to sell the paper or recapitalize. They just look at the property and see if it is worthy enough to rehab or not.

In the end, they just want to make good profits along with the borrower. If anyone goes to them with a good deal, they will fund them. Some of them only fund for the property, whereas, others gives funding for the repairs too as long as they can see a good ROI.


10 Must-Knows About Hard Money Loans

Category : Hard Money Loans

Hard money loans made by private investors are one of the best sources of financing for investors
looking to take advantage of the great prices in California’s residential housing market. With attractive
terms and rates on one to four unit homes, they make it possible for you to purchase great
opportunities even in today’s constrained lending market. Here are 10 things that you should know
about these exciting financing products:
1. Hard money loans make tough transactions possible. When you have a slam-dunk transaction that
will not pass muster with a bank, they are your best option.
2. They are less expensive than you think. While hard money typically costs more than a bank loan,
most borrowers can get loans at very favourable rates and terms. Given the returns that most real
estate investors expect to make from properties bought with hard money, the loan is quite
inexpensive.
3. Cash reserves matter. Most private lenders want to ensure that you have enough money to service
their loan, no matter what.
4. Private loans can be used for construction and rehab financing as well as for straight purchases.
5. Hard money loans are fast. You can expect your loan to close in days or weeks instead of months.
While loans usually take two to three weeks to close, three day closes are possible.
6. Hard money lenders are flexible. Since they are private individuals, they can frequently structure
loans creatively to meet your specific needs.
7. Flips, rehabs and other distressed property transactions are not a problem. If they will make you
money as an investor, they are a perfect opportunity for a private lender.
8. Access to private mortgage loans makes it easier for you to get the best deals. Being able to buy
with no loan contingency or with a very short loan contingency makes you a much more attractive
buyer to the sellers of distressed property with a great deal of upside.
9. Hard money loans are available with a longer amortization period or, in the case of short term
loans, on an interest only basis. This frees up more cash flow for you to use to make other
investments.
10. Private mortgagers are usually more worried about your character than your credit score. While
you must be creditworthy, most private lenders will not immediately dismiss you on the basis of your
FICO score alone.


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