Credit and Construction Loans

Most traditional construction loans require a 680 credit score or better for qualification.  Some niche lenders offer loans on scores less than 680. These loans typically charge higher interest rates and require substantial equity, or money down.  Making a tough situation even worse, loans with less than 680 credit scores loans require 15% of total [...]

Construction Loans and How They Work

Construction to Perm (CTP) Mortgages, One-Time Close Construction to perm loans are essentially 3 loans in one, land loan, construction loan and permanent loan in one transaction. These loans have obvious advantages in that you don’t have to close three times saving you time and closing costs. At closing you purchase your land and extended [...]

Construction Loan Insurance Requirements

Discover Building recommends owner builders consult with insurance professionals in detail to make certain they are properly covered before construction begins. It is extremely important to check all local and state laws concerning insurance requirements and to ensure compliance. When searching for insurance the owner builder may find it difficult to locate insurers to cover [...]

Stated Income Construction Loans and Subprime

A recent article in the Sacramento Business Journal sums up the general consensus in the mortgage business about how risky loans will be handled in the future. While the article focuses on WAMU, the article could be about any publicly traded bank in the country and still hold true. “The Seattle-based company lost $113 million [...]

Small Home Designs Gaining Popularity as Attitudes and Demographics Change in Housing

The facts are somewhat surprising, but American homes have increased the square footage of their homes by 50% in the last 30 years. Now the trend for smaller home designs is gaining popularity as empty-nesters and green attitudes penetrate the housing market. Smaller homes, which offer energy-efficient and space utilization are more desirable as Americans [...]

7 Home Design Tips For Entertaining

Do you want your new home to be the main attraction for formal social settings, sporting events and children’s parties? Then you will need to design with all of this in mind. Here are seven tips to remember when designing your new home. Dining Areas Be sure to consider dining proximity to the kitchen for [...]

Calculating Land Equity

If you are considering a construction loan and have purchased your land already, you may benefit from the equity accumulated over time. Most lenders will use the sales price if the transaction took place in two years or less to calculate equity. If the lender uses the purchase price your equity is calculated only by [...]

How Do I Find Lots For Sale?

Finding the right lot can be a difficult task.  Here are some helpful ideas to make the process easier. The first place you may look is at your local Realtor office for land listings. Before calling a Realtor go to their website and see if they offer online MLS (multiple listing services) searches. This should give [...]

Selecting A Building Lot

Lot selection is an often over-looked aspect of building a new home, and oddly enough; it is one of the most important. The lot you choose to build on is in essence the “foundation,” if you will, in many cases of your most important asset. With all this being said, it is also vital you [...]

ASHRAE’s Top 10-How to Ensure Good Indoor Air Quality

The American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has generated the following list of the top ten things that homeowners can do to provide good indoor air quality. Fossil-fuel-fired water heaters and furnaces should use sealed-combustion or be power-vented. When natural-draft appliances must be used, they should be tested for proper venting [...]

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