| Welcome to the Home Improvement Financing Site! We are dedicated
to helping people grow the equity and value of their home with a number of
creative with traditional methods for obtaining home improvement loans.
We believe that financing home improvements will help credit markets
and raise home values across the country.
Paying for a home improvements with a low interest loan will create
more jobs than paying for the same jobs with cash and will allow more
people to commit to larger home improvement projects than they could
afford without a loan.
There are a number of creative home improvement loan options and
many different home improvement credit cards to choose from! |
So you’ve got a home improvement project that needs to be completed
and you have worked with your bank or lender to get a home improvement
loan. You have the money or you’ll be getting the money soon, but before the
first nail is driven into a board you can begin maximizing how much bang
you’re going to get for your home improvement buck.
Here are some ways you can get the most out of your home improvement loan:
Interview Several Contractors: You may have done this before you
applied for your home improvement loan, but if you haven’t chosen a
contractor then your best bet is to pull in a few different contractors and
have them bid on the job. Be sure to let them know that there are other
contractors in the running, so they’ll be willing to quote you their best
price. And remember, with the housing slump a lot of home improvement
contractors are hurting for business so they might be willing to
barter for home improvement services or work out a flexible payment plan.
Do Your Own Setup and Cleanup: One of the easiest ways to save
money on any home improvement project where you’re hiring a
professional is to do some of the work yourself. Even if you’re not
an experienced handyman or women, you can probably prep a job site
or clean up after the work is done and save yourself some real money.
If you’re having new flooring put down then you could pull up the old
tile or carpet with a little work and research. Likewise, at the end of
a job don’t be shy about offering to clean up the site, and do some
finishing work such as painting or cleaning in exchange for a few dollars
knocked off the final bill. Saving your contractor just a few hours
of extra work at the end of a job could allow him to start another
project somewhere else sooner and might be well worth it for him or her.
Again, by reducing labor costs you can
reduce your home improvement financing amount.
Buy Your Own Home Improvement Materials:
When you hire a contractor to work on your home he or she will often
be responsible for bringing materials and supplies to the job site
according to your preference. While contractors may get reduced
pricing on a lot of building materials they may not always pass those
savings on to you. Don’t be afraid of working with your contractor
and buying your own building supplies from local home improvement stores
if you can. Some contractors are more willing to work with you on
this than others. No matter how much you trust your contractor,
you should also try to take some time to really understand what kind
of work will be done and what’s involved. It may help you save some
money and it could help you avoid potential disagreements with your
contractor down the line. If you’ve budgeted well then you should
probably have some extra money left over from your home
improvement loan. You can either pay the money back early and
save yourself some interest or you can put the money into upgrades
in your home that you hadn’t originally considered. Getting the money
for a a big home improvement is an important first step of upgrading
your house,but it will then be up to you to make sure the money is
spent wisely and efficiently.
Steps To Take To Get a Home Improvement Loan
Home improvement loans are different from most other loan types
by nature because there are often more variables and details to cover
for most home improvement financing plans. While all banks and
lending institutions are slightly different, most have a general set
of instructions and steps you must follow to get approved for a
home improvement loan. Don’t be afraid of a little paperwork!
Most banks and lending institutions have gotten pretty good
about limiting the amount of forms you have to fill out and steps
you have to take. Here are the things you’ll need to cover when
you apply for a loan in order to improve or add-on to your existing home:
Your Home’s Equity: Most home improvement loans
are secured loans, meaning they are at least partially based on the
amount of collateral you have to offer to the bank. The most common
form of collateral is the amount of equity, or extra value above the amount
owed on your mortgage, that you have in your home. If you’ve been
paying your mortgage for a number of years then you most likely
have at least some equity, though the bursting of the housing bubble
have left a record number of homeowners upside down on their mortgages.
You can get an estimate of your home’s equity by using various home value
estimation tools on the internet or you can simply look at the prices that
some of the homes in your area recently sold for. Most banks will actually
send out a professional home value estimator to look at your home’s
exterior and interior before finalizing your home
improvement financing. Obviously, if you have an upside-down mortgage,
then equity won’t be a factor in your home improvement financing plan.
In that case you may need to apply for a more unconventional
unsecured home improvement loan.
Home Improvement Estimates: A lot of people go into the loan
process with only a vague notion of how much money they need to
complete the project. It’s difficult to get a loan from a bank without
having a fairly specific list of how you’re going to use the money
they give you.
You’ll want to work with a contractor or the company that is going
to be doing most of the work for this step. The more detailed your
estimates, the better. Contractors will often be open to giving you
several “levels” of quotes for different affordability options.
If you were having your kitchen remodeled you might get a quote
that includes stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops,
one that includes standard appliances and standard countertops and
one that simply has builder’s grade materials.
Neighborhood Comparatives: When you’re improving your
home there is such a thing as “doing too much” to it. Generally, you
want your home have the same features and square footage as most
of the other homes in your area. Turning your home into a 5,000
square foot house when most of your neighbors only have 1,300
square feet may actually prevent your home from ever reaching
it’s full potential in value. Whether you’re doing interior remodeling
or putting an addition on your home, it will help if you can find some
comparative examples of other houses in your neighborhood with
the same or similar updates. Banks want to be sure that their money
is being invested wisely and could warrant a return on their investment
if they ever had to take over your property as a result of non-payment
on your part.
Your Monthly Income: To pay back the loan you’re going to most
likely need some proof of a steady income. Past paychecks will
often work for this, though if you’re self-employed you may also
need to provide copies of tax forms for the past several years so
that your bank or lender will see that you have a viable business with
steady income. If you’re just starting a business or if you’ve just change
jobs you may have a more difficult time convincing a bank that you can
afford to make regular payments.
Along with your income it is often a good idea to have a current list of
monthly expenses
and bills on hand so that you can show that you have money to spare at
the end of the month and you can afford a loan for your home improvements.
Be sure to separate out any expenses you have already put towards you home
improvement or any charges you have on a home improvement credit card.
They can serve as proof that you’re serious about your home improvement
project (as long as you can afford it).
Talk To Your Lender: This should often be your first step, but it sometimes
helps to have a lot of the other things in place anyway. Even if your specific
lender doesn’t need everything listed above, it’s still a good idea to have
most of them on hand just so you can make an informed decision about
your home improvement financing options. You may decide that you don’t
need a loan or that can’t afford one, based on the other pieces of
information you’ve already compiled. If you haven’t decided upon a lender,
then speak with each one to see what specifics each one requires.
If you’ve already chosen where you’d like to apply for a loan, then speak
with them or contact them and just make sure you know what paperwork is
required. All lenders are slightly different and some may require a lot more
documentation than others. Your lender will also be able to properly determine
if you qualify for a specialized loan package, such as an
FHA home improvement loan or even a Veteran’s home improvement loan.
Getting financing for a home improvement project or home addition can be a
lengthy process with inspections and paperwork and various estimates all
needing to be signed and sent to various parties. Some lenders can grant
home improvement loans in just a few weeks, while others may take several
months. It’s a good idea to plan far ahead in advance and let the contractors
you’re working with know that your schedules may be dependent upon your
ability to get the proper home financing in a timely manner.
A Good Year For A Home Improvement Loan
This year is shaping up to be “The Year of the Home Improvement”
according to a number of sources both inside and outside of the home
improvement and financial industries.
While the last year and a half has been rough on the housing market as
well as the home remodeling industry, the latest news shows that there
might be some light at the end of the tunnel.
Make no mistake about it: 2010 is looking to be a pretty good year to
start that large home improvement project even if it means borrowing
money or financing the project. Home improvement retailers such as
The Home Depot and Lowes are reporting better than expected sales
and have begun to see larger projects and busier contractors coming
in the door.
Two things are happening to drive the increased demand for home
improvement. First, people who haven’t been able to sell their homes
are giving up and taking the plunge into remodeling now that they feel
the economy isn’t going to get much worse. And second, the overall
cost of home remodeling has actually gone down over the past year
or two as contractors and retailers have lowered their prices to stay
competitive with one another.
This demand, combined with the weak economy, has actually made
for a very attractive home improvement loan environment. There are also
a lot of people taking advantageof first time home buyer incentives and
tax rebates and they are combining that extra saved money with a small
home loan so that they can get a kitchen or bathroom upgrade that they
otherwise couldn’t afford. Here are some of the reasons you may want
to go for a larger home improvement this year rather than put it off for
another year or two:
Low Loan Interest Rates: Bank rates are still the lowest they’ve been
in years for personal loans, mortgages and just about any sort of loan you
can think of. Interest rates haven’t risen significantly yet, but as the
economy picks up steam loans will begin to slowly get more and more expensive.
This is a case of striking while the iron is still hot. Years from now people
will look back at the home improvement loan rates of today and wish they
could get a rate this low.
Low Contractor Rates: A lot of contractors are starting to get busier,
but many probably haven’t raised their rates or really adjusted how
they’ve done business for the last year or two.
Many are still going to be grateful to get any chance at all for regular work.
As the weather gets better and the home improvement season wears on
more contractors are going to raise their rates just to deal weed out the
serious offers from non-serious offers.
Home Prices Are Rising: This may not seem like a good thing, but it
actually is. As home prices slowly begin to rise again it means that the
value of what you are putting into your home is also rising. That means
that if you spend $30,000 on a kitchen remodel this year and then decide
to sell your home a year from now you could actually end up making money.
Rising home values means people will begin to have more equity in their
homes over time, which means the home improvement market will
continue to grow as people begin borrowing against that equity again in
the next few years. Overall, this year looks as though it may be “the year”
to apply for a home improvement loan.
Banks are still being conservative with their money, but you may qualify
for a special loan such as a VA home improvement loan, an
FHA home improvement loan or any one of a number of state or local
home improvement loans that we’ve detailed here in the past.
This site specializes in bringing you news and information about how
to get a home improvement loan, but there are times when taking
a loan for home improvements may not be a good idea either because
your finances are unstable, you’re thinking about moving and don’t
think you’d recover the cost or you’re saving up for something else.
But if the roof is leaking or your furnace just went up or you’re in
desperate need of some sort of repair or improvement on your home then
you still have some choices.
Barter Directly for Home Improvement Services: This is one of the
most obvious ways you can arrange to have someone work on your home
without actually paying the person or company cash. The barter itself would
have to be agree upon ahead of time and it’s usually easiest to barter with
smaller contracting companies or independent owners than trying to deal
with large corporations. Depending on the size of the job you could trade
just about anything you own from a computer to a pair of skis to a car
or even a boat! And remember: you can also barter with services. You
probably have a lot of skills and talents you don’t even know about.
Some of those skills could serve you as well as having the cash in hand.
I have a friend who builds websites on the side and he just moved in to a
new house. When he was shopping around for someone to refinish his
hardwood floors he found a guy who needed a website. So he made a trade:
two rooms of floor refinishing for one basic website. Both parties ended up happy!
Barter Indirectly for Home Improvement Services: You don’t have to
just work out a deal with the contractor. Though less common, there are
cases where you can indirectly barter with services or products involving a third party.
There are some companies that offer this, but more often than not you can sometimes
barter for home improvement services by just knowing lots of people. Indirectly
bartering for home improvements and services occurs more often in tight-knit
neighborhoods or even among family members.
Work For The Contractor: This is a form of direct bartering, but it’s a little more formal.
My cousin needed new windows in his home a few years ago, so he worked out a deal
with local window company that he would help the company on Saturdays during the busy
summer months in exchange for having a certain number of windows installed at his home
for free. He learned on the job and now actually works for the guy every summer just to
make some extra cash!
Neighborhood Loans for Home Improvement: These types of loans aren’t common,
though there are many different ways you could look at a
neighbor-to-neighbor home improvement loan.
Again, this occurs more in communities where everyone knows each other,
but if an elderly person in the neighborhood needs something done I’ve read
about neighbors getting together and pitching in with their time and money.
Fixing up a house that’s fallen on tough times can be incredibly helpful to the
homeowner, but can also boost the value of the other homes in the area with
the increased curb appeal.These are just some of the ways you can “pay”
for a home improvement without really paying for it with cash.
If you find the right contractor or handyman you can often get
some amazing work done on your home for a fraction of the cost of what
it might normally cost.
VA Home Improvement Loans
Many veterans are aware they may receive less expensive financing by way
of VA Home Improvement Loans and Grants. Although the veteran has heard
about loans and grants offered by the Federal Government very few are aware of
what is necessary to qualify for a VA loan. If you are a veteran or you are an unmarried
survivor of a veteran who has passed away you owe it to yourself to review the
advantages of attaining home improvement financing through the Veteran’s Affairs
program.
The Facts about VA Home Improvement Loans
The VA home improvement loan by definition is not a loan in the truest sense.
It is known as a loan guaranty process. This is because the Veteran’s
Administration is not a lending institution or banker. However the Veterans
Administration pledges the full repayment of the loan originated through a lending source.
This guaranty naturally reduces the risk to the lending company.
There are lower rates of interest associated with the VA Home
Improvement Loan and the loan is available to all veterans of the military.
The amount of money veterans can borrow varies, though you will need to
apply for the loan in the state where your home is built. There is no fee or penalty
for early termination of the loan through a payoff. The total amount of a VA loan for
home improvement cannot exceed 90 percent of the value of your home and there are
some additional restrictions placed on the loan amount depending upon where you live.
Increasing a home’s energy efficiency is a popular home improvement, and many
veterans can borrow up to $6,000 for just that purpose without having their home’s
value assessed beforehand. For loans between $3,001 to $6,000 you may need to show
that your utility bills were reduced because of the repairs or improvement you paid for.
For energy efficient improvements under $3,000 you generally only have to present the
receipt for the item to the loan vendor.
Who is Eligible for a VA Home Improvement Loan?
The first thing to do in order to determine eligibility for VA Home Improvement Loans is
to attain an automated certificate. The database that provides certificates in this regard may
not be current as it does not always have data on each person that applies. The best thing
to do if the database that generates the certificate of eligibility does not have your name on
file is to fill out a form referred to as a certificate of eligibility (Form 26-1880). Forms may
be obtained by visiting the official website for VA Forms. You may also do this at the
eligibility center correspondent with your section or region of the country or through the mail.
Individuals who have credit issues with regard to attaining VA home improvement loans will
want to receive credit counseling. Additionally you should be receiving a fairly substantial
income as this is crucial in your attaining a VA home improvement loan. The guaranty will
only be applicable if you have the revenue in order to support the monthly loan amount.
If the preceding stipulation is not in place you will simply not qualify. It is important to “put all
your ducks in a row” financially before filling out the certificate of eligibility.
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Using VA Loan Money
Certainly if you qualify for VA home improvement loans and grants you may use
the money for any purpose.The lender or the officials at the Veteran’s Affairs office
are not particular about the use of the loan or grant. In example, you may use a
loan for the purchase of a “fixer upper” and use what remains for improvements.
Home improvements such as new windows, new doors, a new roof, a new
furnace and even an electronic thermostat are all things that can be paid for
with a VA loan. Further, it should be noted grants are monies that needn’t be
paid back. In order to determine if you qualify for grants it is recommended you
visit the government site for further information. If you are a veteran and need
money to upgrade or repair your home, then a VA home improvement loan is
definitely something you should look into. You may also want to visit the remarkably
detailed (and somewhat confusing)
VA Home Loan website. As a veteran you gave a lot for your country and being able
to get a VA loan is one way your country can thank you. You owe it to yourself to
look into a VA loan for home improvement for other needs you may have. Remember:
The Department of Veteran Affairs does not actually loan you the money, but they do
guarantee the loan. You’ll need to talk to individual credit and lending institutions
(or even us an online loan company) like your local bank or credit union to actually
apply for the loan itself.
When you’re applying for a home improvement loan or looking for some sort of a
home improvement grant, don’t forget to check into your local government offices
to see what they offer. Some small towns, cities and even states offer specialized
home improvement financing programs for their constituents and citizens.
Like banks, local municipalities have a big interest in helping homeowners
keeping their homes from falling into disrepair. The nicer the homes are in any given
town or state, the higher the home value and the more people will want to move to
that city or town. Lots of states offer home improvement loans and grants,
but now more and more cities and even counties are doing the same,
either with tax money collected from other constituents or with privately raised money.
Here are a few good examples:
San Diego, CA - The San Diego Housing Enhancement Loan Programs (HELP)
are city loans which are aimed at helping homeowners in San Diego improve their
homes in order to make their neighborhoods more appealing destinations.
Qualification is based on a number of criteria, but the home improvement loans
can help residents pay for interior as well as exterior home improvements such as painting,
replacement windows, new doors, roof replacement, plumbing upgrades and even
drought-resistant yard and landscaping improvements.
Knoxville, TN - The Knoxville My Front Yard Program gives eligible residents up
to $4,999 in home improvement loans which could be completely forgivable if
certain restrictions are met. Knoxville gives out these home improvement loans,
which often become home improvement grants, if the resident then stays in the
home for an additional five years. The idea is to keep residents living in their
neighborhoods by taking pride in where they live and increasing the community’s appeal
to others at the same time.
Chicago, IL - Chicago has ever different home loan programs, one of which is through
the Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS)
organization. They offer affordable fixed rate home improvement loans for residents in
Chicago and Elgin to help home owners upgrade the efficiency, safety and desireability
of their homes. They also offer some home and building rehabilitation loans as well as some
forgivable home loans to help move more lower income residents into a home of their own.
New York City, NY -
The massive New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD)
helps all sorts of people and organizations in New York City repair and update buildings
and homes in the city. The HPD offers a number of different building rehabilitation loans
that building and home owners can take advantage of.
For the same reason that many of these municipalities and cities are interested in giving its
residents affordable home improvement loans,so are local banks.
In fact, local neighborhood banks often approve home improvement loans
that larger banks might not. Local banks have much more to gain by having their local
communities and neighborhoods increase their home value with improvements and upgrades.
The more desireable a neighborhood or city becomes, the more businesses and other
residents will want to move to that city and more people means more customers for the local banks!
How To Get A Swimming Pool Loan
One of the most expensive home improvements you can make, installing a swimming pool,
is so popular in some areas that entire financial companies now concentrate only one
providing swimming pool financing and loans to homeowners.
Sure, it’s the end of summer and it’s too late to install a pool now, but that’s why it’s a
perfect time to start thinking about next summer.
The swimming pool construction business is very seasonal and is almost always slowing
down around the end of summer and early autumn months. Swimming pool financing
and construction companies are always the most eager to cut deals and offer good
pricing around this time because it’s when sales are the slowest. Late summer and early
fall is almost always the best time to go shopping for a swimming pool loan, though
many lending institutions will offer special deal all year now. Swimming pool sales,
planning and even some preliminary construction almost always begins to put up
again after the Christmas and New Years holidays.
Financing a swimming pool is a little harder now than it has been in the past,
partially because swimming pools do not significantly raise the value of a home
but primarily because of the drop in overall home values around the country.
In the past most homeowners were able to get a home equity line of credit or a
home equity loan based on the growing value of their house to pay for a swimming
pool in advance. Lower home values means that not as many people can borrow
the money required for a swimming pool, which can be anywhere from $15,000 to $50,000
for larger pools.That means that the people who are putting swimming pools in at their
homes have often been living in their homes for a long time and have significant equity built
up over the years. You can still buy a home and then immediately turn around and
borrow money to put in a new pool, but that’s generally only done now when you’re
able to buy a home below market value so that the moment you move in you have plenty
of equity available.While it may be harder to borrow the money to build a swimming pool,
it certainly isn’t impossible. There are still plenty
of swimming pool financing options. Many local banks and lending institutions do still want
to give out swimming pool loans because it does help raise the value around the
neighborhood moderately and people who buy swimming pools are likely to stay
with the same bank for years to come. It should be noted that you cannot use a
HUD or FHA Title I loan to pay for a swimming pool, but in some cases building
a pool is a valid home improvement that is may make you eligible for a tax deduction.
Here are some tips to getting a good deal on a loan for a swimming pool’s construction:
Compare loan options first: Before looking at swimming pools, first go shopping for a loan.
Try local banks first and work up to larger institutions. You’ll most likely have to know
the value of your home, the amount of money you still owe on it and have proof of income.
Even if you don’t have any home equity there are still lots of things you can do to
improve your chances of getting an unsecured loan from a bank.
Buying a pool, like buying a new house, is much easier if you are pre-approved for a specific
loan amount in advance. This also helps you set a budget and prevents you from
overspending on your swimming pool.
The more quotes for loans you have, the better, because it means you’ll be able to
compare and contrast each loan offer and evengo back to financial institutions and ask if
they can be more competitive in their rates.
Consider a partial swimming pool loan: One of the most obvious ways to make
a swimming pool more affordable is to have some of the money available.
You can try saving up the money or you can think about selling something to raise
the money needed to pay for a swimming pool. Swimming pools require
maintenance and tend to take up a lot of time, so you may want to consider
selling something that you won’t be using as much once you get a swimming pool.
Lots of people choose to sell boats, motorcycles and even cars to help
pay for a new swimming pool. Some families postpone or cancel family vacations
for years in order to pay for a new swimming pool.
Watch the fine print: When you’re financing a swimming pool you’ll likely have
lots of different contracts and agreements to look at, from the loan agreement to the
construction agreement to the excavation agreement, all of which could be from
different companies.
Watch for hidden fees based on unforeseen delays, balloon payments and other
contract riders which could increase the amount you are
paying for your swimming pool unfairly. It may be worthwhile to pay a contract
lawyer to look over all your agreements and contracts before you sign.
Plan for added swimming pool maintenance costs: While the price of a
swimming pool might be $20,000 on paper, the true cost may be much more.
You’ll have to maintain your swimming pool throughout the year with special services,
chemicals, upgraded pool equipment and more, so be sure to include that in your budgeting.
One good way to handle this is to build the initial swimming pool loan with some
extra cash available for pool maintenance for the first year. That way you can discover
how much money you’ll need each year to maintain your pool without going bankrupt
the first summer you have it.
Consider swimming pool construction company financing: Swimming pool
companies know that their products are expensive, so they often offer their own
financing deals. Most swimming pool companies have special arrangements with
local banks that can loan you the money to pay for a swimming pool.
The percentage rate is usually a little higher than a straight bank loan but they
can be a good way to borrow money for a swimming pool if you have nothing
else available. Some swimming pool construction companies can offer both
unsecured and secured home improvement loans. These should usually be
your last resort, simply because they are almost always the most expensive.
Adding a swimming pool to an existing home is a great way to relax during
the summer and improve your home’s comfort. And while an inground swimming
pool may slightly increase the value of a home, an above ground swimming pool
almost has no effect at all on a home’s overall selling price. That being said, you
should not plan to put in a swimming pool and recuperate all your costs in your
home’s value.
Applying for a swimming pool loan should be a personal decision that is made
for the sake of you and your family’s desires and not for the express purpose
of selling your home to someone else. Yes, swimming pool financing is
sometimes difficult to get, but you’ll forget that when you’re lying in the hot
summer sun lazily drifing around your pool of clear cool water with a drink in your hand!
Decrease Your Home Improvement Loan Amount By Reducing Your Labor Costs
The purpose of this site is obviously to help you improve your home and
save money at the same time. Since most major home improvements involve
more money than most people have sitting in the bank, it makes sense to
finance or take out loans for those home projects in most cases. Obviously,
there are many different types of home improvement loans, all of which have
advantages and disadvantages.
And while taking out loans and financing your home improvement project is
almost a given these days, it still makes sense to try to reduce the amount of
money you borrow, and ultimately have to pay back. You can do this in a
number of ways from only tacklingsmall, less expensive home improvement
projects to breaking your home improvement projects into stages, to merely
scaling back exactly what you want to do to you home. Really, the goal in
any home improvement project is to get the most “bang for your buck”
which means you want to try to reduce the overall cost while still improving
your home as much as you can. Generally speaking there are two different
“expense types” in any home improvement projects. There are material expenses
which cover all the building materials, tools, and other physical items which go
into a home improvement project and there are the labor expenses.
You can control both and keep them low if you plan carefully.
Material expenses can be kept low by choosing materials and building supplies
that are on sale or being discontinued. You can sometimes buy surplus materials
from warehouses or even from companies and contractors who happen to have
items left over.There is only so low you can go with most building materials.
Labor is another matter on many home improvement jobs. Sure, some home
improvement contractors offer specialized services, but a lot of home improvement
can be done by just about anyone who is willing to roll up his or her sleeves and
get a little dirty.
Remember that any home improvement job really has lots of different steps and
just about any step you can do yourself can save you money.
When I was having my kitchen floor replaced the flooring company was going
to charge me $150 for each layer of vinyl flooring they had to scrap up before
they put down the new floor. I pulled up one corner of the kitchen and found 3
different layers, which would have really added to the overall cost of my floor.
Instead I went out to the hardware store and bought one large and one small
metal flooring scraper for a total for $40. Over the next week I spent and hour
or so a day scraping up and ripping up flooring until my kitchen floor was down
to the concrete slab. The flooring guy came in, complimented my job and I ended
up saving $450 in the process!
As for the scraping tools, I still have them and have used them in several smaller
projects as well! Even minor things like cleaning up the job site after the job or
doing demolition work all costs you money, so if you do it yourself you won’t
end up paying for it out of your own pocket!
Even if you’re not an expert home improvement do-it-yourself kind of guy or
gal or want to spend hours and hours of time working on your home, even the
smallest things can help a contractor and reduce your overall costs. I didn’t
know anything about floors, but I sure could bang and scrape my way to concrete!
Be sure to speak with your home improvement contractor before you sign and paperwork
and try to work out the best way for you to still use his services while saving you some money.
Knoxville Tennessee Forgivable Home Improvement Loans
If you live in Knoxville, Tennessee you might be eligible for a new forgivable home
improvement loan initiative called the“My Front Yard” program.
The offering gives qualified applicants up to $4,999 in home improvement loans
that don’t have to be paid back if all the requirements are met. As we’ve noted before,
Tennessee home improvements and loan applications are still on the rise while much
of the country is seeing a decline in overall home improvement projects.
This is a joint effort of local Community Development as well as the US Department
of Housing and Urban Development and it covers the 16 square mile empowerment
zone of most of Knoxville, TN that is home to nearly 48,000 people. The loans are
forgiven at 20 percent a year for each year you continue to live in the home, so after
5 years the loan is completely forgiven and the money essentially ends up being a home
improvement grant that never has to be repaid.
The home improvement loans are designed for exterior home improvements including,
but not limited to, exterior doors, gutters, landscaping, roof repairs, porch repairs, shutters,
driveways, sidwalks, accessibility ramps, siding, painting and even exterior lighting.
The Housing Manager for the Community Development Department has explained the
program as a good way for homeowners to improve the value of their home by
increasing curbside appeal. The loan is designed to help people improve their
homes and then reward them by staying in those homes for the next five years
and continuing to care for and maintain their investment.
Improvements to just a few homes in any single neighborhood can actually increase
the home value of other houses in the surrounding area. Participants in Knoxville’s
“My Front Yard” program have been overwhelming enthusiastic about how easy
the loan process is and how good their homes look after the improvements.
Knoxville has worked with over 30 homeowners so far and still has funding
available for more. After applying for the home improvement grant inspectors
will make sure your home is in good enough structure condition for improvements.
Problematic homes might also be eligible for home improvement financing and low-interest
loans through the “Owner Occupied Rehab” program which is also part of the EZ home
repair program.
If you’re interested in learning more you can call 865-215-2120 or visit the
city of Knoxville’s Development Department’s website.
How You Can Afford A Home Improvement When You Have No Equity
As we all know, the housing bubble has popped. This has put a strain on people
who were hoping to use the increased monetary value of their homes to perform
some much needed home upgrades. The crash in home values across the nation
means there are many people who are now living in homes that have not built up
any added value over the past couple years.
In a rising housing market you can buy a house value one year and in the next year
the value of the home will actually increase by a few percentage points from one
year to the next. You would then be able to borrow money against that added
value from a lending institution and use that money for a big home repair project.
So if you bought a home for $175,000 a few years ago it might actually
be worth $185,000 today with normal economic growth.
These days many home prices have actually dropped in the past year or so,
which means a lot of people are now paying for homes
that are now worth less than what they originally paid. When you owe more cash on
a house than what it is valued at then you are said to be “underwater” with your
mortgage payments. This means they don’t have that extra home value which is
known as “equity.” If you’re searching for a big home remodeling loan then you
may want to think about applying for an FHA home improvement loan from an
eligible loan partner.
There are lots of sellers of these kinds of loans, they offer a low interest rate and you can
be eligible to pay it off over a generous 15 years. Just about any one who owns a home
can apply for an FHA loan and eligibility is less restrictive than most traditional lending
institution loans.
You do not have to have equity in your home to apply for a Title I home improvement
loan.
If an FHA loan isn’t going to work for you and your credit is still decent, try an
online home improvement loan from a financial institution like the LendingClub.
They offer personal loans that have a much lower interest rate than a bank, they
are one of the few growing financial organizations out there, and they are
community-based, so its really a lot of people helping each other.
Another great way to keep the costs of a home upgrade project down is to do
at least some of the labor yourself. There are lots of easy DIY home improvement
jobs most people can do around their homes with just a little bit of know-how
and some elbow grease. For many home improvement jobs the highest expense
often comes from the amount of manual work involved, so by doing some of that
work yourself, you can really reduce the total cost of the overall job.
Most manageable house repairs can become major headaches if they are allowed
to go unaddressed for too long. If you have a serious house repair that needs
to be done, don’t let your home’s dropping value prevent you from getting the
money you need to make the repairs. And, as expected, big home improvements
always end up costing more than the small ones.
More helpful articles about home improvement loans:
How To Get A Swimming Pool Loan
How To Barter and Trade for Home Improvements
Pay Off Your Home Improvement Loan With A Tax Refund
If you’re looking to finance a home improvement this year, there’s still a
good chance that you’ll be able to get the loan you need as long as you
don’t rely on the more traditional forms of home improvement loans.
First, banks are still being very conservative about lending any money at
all and since most banks specialize in secured home improvement loans,
the news isn’t good. Housing prices are still dropping and leaving many
homeowners without enough equity to take out the traditional Home Equity
Loan or Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC). That means that banks aren’t
going to be jumping up and down to hand out money.
Another whammy for people wanting home equity loans is the rising bank
interest rates. The interest rates on most bank loans are still much lower
than they’ve been in the past, but they’re starting to creep up, which means
there will likely be even less home improvement financing though traditional
bank loans in the upcoming months.
This does not mean, however, that home improvement across the nation has
come to a standstill. Both large national home improvement stores The
Home Depot and Lowe’s have recently stated that their outlook for the rest
of the year is not quite as bad as they originally expected. Both home
improvement stores are limiting expansion, trying to improve the customer
experience and aiming to cut costs.
While large home improvement projects are still being delayed due to a
lack of equity and the inability to take out a large home improvement loan,
smaller home improvement projects, many that
may require an unsecured home improvement loan, are still popular
because there are so many people choosing to stay and improve their
own homes rather than selling and moving to a new house. It doesn’t hurt that
The Home Depot offers several low interest home improvement
credit cardsLowe’s offers their own home improvement credit options
to entice customers into their own stores. and While banks may not be lending money
for home improvements very readily, there are some alternative options. You may
qualify for a Title 1 FHA home improvement loan depending upon your situation or,
if you’ve got a small home repair or upgrade project you can try
getting an online home improvement loan through the Lending Club.
They offer rates better than most banks, but you do need to have a decent credit score.
Don’t shy away from doing home improvements if you can actually afford to do them.
Most home improvements, even minor ones, can increase the value and pleasure you
get from living in your house. When housing prices begin to rise again
(and, don’t worry, they will) then you’re home’s value will rise faster than comparable
homes in your area without those improvements.
FHA Title I Home Improvement Loans
There’s a lot of confusion about Title I home improvement loans and what they
really are, which is a shame because they’re one of the best forms of home
improvement financing available. Did you know you could borrow up to
$25,000 for under $200 a month…even if you don’t have no equity built up
in your home?
There are misconceptions about how Title I loans for home improvements
work and even what they can be used for. In this article we’re going to try to
cover some of the more common questions about this home improvement loan program.
What is a Title I Home Improvement Loan?
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has created a home
improvement loan program through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) that can
help homeowners fix up their homes, perform repairs on their house or even build on
additions or non-residential buildings (such as a shed) on a piece of property that
they own. The borrower must have a good credit history and be able to pay back the
loan with monthly payments.
It’s important to note that an FHA Title I home improvement loan is not actually a
loan or a grant directly from the government. Rather, HUD insures private lenders
against the losses of these loans, which makes more local private lenders willing to
give out these loans to homeowners. That means that when you apply for a Title
I home improvement loan you’re actually applying for a loan through a private lending
institution and not through HUD or the FHA.
Many local banks, credit unions, mortgage companies and other lending institutions
are actually Title I lenders and you’ll still want to shop around with each to get the
best loan for you. Even trustworthy online lending institutions like
LendingTree Mortgage Loans offer competitive FHA Title I Home Improvement Loans.
What kind of home improvements are covered with Title I Home Improvement Loans?
The home improvement project can be as small as adding some extra insulation to the attic t
o larger home projects such as replacing a roof, remodeling a kitchen, adding a bathroom,
buying a new furnace or constructing a new room on your house. Single family Title
I home improvement loans must be used to pay for structural or site changes, repairs or
additions and cannot be used for luxury or extraneous items like swimming pools, hot tubs,
barbecue pits or interior decorating. The improvements must also be part of the permanent
structure and cannot be temporary in nature.
Multifamily structure home improvement loans can only be used for alterations and repairs.
What are the borrowing terms of a Title I Home Improvement Loan?
Here are he maximum home improvement loan amount and loan terms are based on the
type of structure you’re improving:
| Maximum
Loan Amount | Maximum
Loan Term |
| Single Family House | $25,000 | 20 years |
Manufactured House on
Permanent Foundation
(classified and taxed as real estate) | $17,000 | 15 years |
Manufactured House
(classified as personal property) | $7,500 | 12 years |
| Multifamily Structure | up to $12,000 per
living unit,
with a maximum of $60,000 | 15 years |
The interest rate of FHA Title I home improvement loans can vary from one
location to another and even from one loan lender to another. The interest rate
is usually a fixed rate that is mostly based on national loan interest rates at the time.
Want to really see the benefit of a Title I home improvement loan? If you were eligible
to borrow that maximum of $25,000 with a 20 year term and an annual rate of 6%
(that’s about the average loan rate these days) then your monthly payments would be
a measly $179.11! That’s an incredible deal and it’s unlikely to be matched by any
traditional home improvement loan or credit card offer!
What makes an FHA Title I Home Improvement Loan different from traditional
home improvement loans?
First, no equity is required to apply for a Title I home improvement loan.
Second, the amount of money you can borrow can be dictated by the estimated value
of your home after the improvements are done. This is especially helpful if you don’t have
any equity in your home at the moment, but need to complete some home improvements to
increase the value of your home.
Third, there are lower closer costs due to the lack of a need for an appraisal and the
qualifications for applying for an FHA Title 1 loan are often less restrictive than conventional
home improvement loans.
Forth, while most home improvement loans have a short loan term of only five years, an FHA
Title 1 Home Improvement loan can have a repayment plan of up to 20 years with no penalty
for paying the loan off early.
Are there any other eligibility restrictions for a Title 1 Home Improvement Loan?
There are only a few real restrictions beyond those listed above. If you’re in a “new construction”
home then you have to have lived in the home for more than 90 days. Loan amounts over $7,500
are secured against the mortgage or deed of the property you are improving.
The bottom line: if you’re looking for a low interest home improvement loan that doesn’t
require home equity, consider learning more or applying for an FHA Title I home improvement loan.
Ready to get started? Click here to see if you are eligible for an FHA loan. LendingTree.com.
The Unconventional Neighborhood Home Improvement Loan
There are lots of different ways to pay for home improvements, but some methods
are more conventional than others. When most people think about financing their
home improvements they often consider traditional means of borrowing money
such as going to a bank for a secured home improvement loan or using
a low interest home improvement credit card.
 If, however, your financial situation doesn’t allow you to apply for those sorts of loans, and your home needs some sort of repair to keep it safe then you may want to consider a “good neighbor” home improvement loan.
Neighborhood loans for home improvements have been becoming more common as home prices fall people have lost most of the equity they have in their homes. The concept is simple: people helping people fix up their homes, either with direct help or by providing indirect support such as food or something else for trade.
Here’s a practical example of how a neighborhood home improvement loan would work: Let’s say you’re an elderly woman who needs to repair a leaky roof and maybe have some of your front landscaping thinned out.
Instead of going to a bank or lending institution to try to
borrow the thousands of dollars needed for these home improvements
you could turn to some neighbors who may know how to repair the shingles
on a roof and some able bodies who can tear out some bushes.
In return for this service you might be able to offer some home cooked meals,
knit a blanket or afghan or even offer to do some home cleaning for the people
who are offering to help you.
If you don’t have any neighbors with the skills needed to improve your home,
there is another way you can still finance your home improvements.
You can offer to take out a personal loan from your neighbors and in return
you can pay back the loan at a small interest rate, much lower than what a
bank might charge. In this situation your neighbors get to make a little extra
money with the interest charged and you get to improve your home at a much
cheaper rate than what a traditional lending institution might charge.
To be sure everything stays friendly, you should definitely speak with an attorney
and probably have a written agreement drawn up.
This neighborhood home improvement loan is simply a smaller, and more local,
version of what Lending Club is actually doing : sign up is free and easy,
loan applications are quick and online and the interest rates are lower than most banks.
You can read more about using LendingClub.com for a home improvement loan
and see if the it’s for you. It’s essentially an internet version of a neighborhood loan.
It’s people lending money to other people at a low interest rate.
Of course, when everyone in a neighborhood pitches in an helps another neighbor
improve his or her home, everyong benefits. The nicer and more updated each home
in the neighborhood is, the more everyone’s home is worth. By raising the value of
one home, you in effect increase the value of all homes in the entire neighborhood.
So loaning your neighbor help or money to update his or her home is actually like
giving yourself a loan as well!
Peer-To-Peer Loans for Home Improvements - Review of Lending Club
How would you instead like to get a personal loan for home improvement at low
interest rate (possibly below 8%!) with an easy online application and quick
approval turn around? You can actually get exactly that through the acclaimed and
award-winning online loan service called Lending Club.
 Maybe you don’t have any equity built up in your home or maybe you simply want an unsecured loan for some home improvements. You could go to a bank and look into their home improvement financing options, but a lot of banks are tightening their belts and simply not loaning money out the way they use to. If you did actually get approved for a home improvement loan from your local bank you might expect to pay an interest
rate of anywhere between 11% up to over 18%, depending upon the
lending institution.
Lending Club gives out loans for any amount between $1,000 to $25,000
and you will have a fixed rate for as low as 7.88% currently. All the loans
are three year installment loan and your interest rate will ultimately be set
based on a number of different factors in your credit report.
Lending Club turns the loan process into what it should be: people helping people.
The site joins together people who want to loan money with people
who want to borrow money, but it does so in a clever way to minimize risk to
lenders and to give borrowers money fairly quickly and at a lower rate that
almost any bank out there. It’s also very secure and your identity is always protected.
You can borrow money for home improvements or just about anything else you want.
They give out all sorts of personal loans including debt consolidation loans,
home improvement loans, apartment rental loans and even education loans.
To get these low rate loans, you need to have a pretty decent credit score.
If you’re not sure what your credit score is or you think you may not qualify
you may want to read about
how to get a home improvement loan when you have poor credit.
Borrowing money is really easy with Lending Club. You just need to follow these
four simple steps:
1. Join Lending Club for free! You just click on the “Continue” button on the “Borrow”
side and you can setup free a username and password to join the site and find out more
information about exactly what you qualify for.
2. Once you’ve joined you’ll want to poke around and check out the details of what they offer.
When you want to fill out a loan application, you simply click on the “Borrow” tab and then
click on the “Get a Loan” link near the top of the page. All you do now is fill out the loan
application online. It asks for some basic financial information and verifies your identification
and a valid bank account.
3. Once Lending Club approves your application your anonymous information will be given a letter grade from A to G and will able to be browsed by lenders. All your personal information is completely confidential and secure. When a lender wants to let you borrow money he or she will simply choose to fund it in increments as small as $25. You’ll probably end up having lots of lenders, but don’t worry, you still will pay back the loan with just one payment to LendingClub per month. Once your entire loan amount has been funded you’ll get your money in a day or so via electronic transfer!
4. You have your money, so go fix up your dream home! In the mean time LendingClub will automatically withdraw your payments from your validated bank account every month on the
exact same day, so you won’t get caught by surprise or have to worry about sending
in your payments late. It’s all done automatically for your convenience!
How can they offer loan rates so much lower than banks? They’re a company that deals
exclusively with online transactions, so they don’t have a lot of overhead caused by slow
paperwork (it’s all computerized!) or paying for parking spaces and store front rent
(they just need a website). It’s a streamlined loan process in which everyone wins!
So if you’re looking for a low rate home improvement loan with reasonable terms then you’ve
got nothing to lose by joining Lending Club for free and checking it out!
You may be able to reduce your income taxes by taking out a loan to cover some
much needed home improvements. Not all home improvements qualify for a tax
deduction or tax credit, but in certain kinds of home improvements can decrease
your taxes not just for the calendar year in which you finish the project, but
also for years to come.
If you are required to perform a home improvement project or remodel part of
your home to accommodate a medical condition then all or part of the cost of
that project may serve as a tax deduction, which means you can reduce that
amount from your taxable income for the year.
If, for example, someone in your home is suddenly confined to a wheelchair
you may be able to deduct the amount it takes to install an elevator, lower
kitchen cabinets or simply widen doorways in your home. Only certain home
improvements related to medical costs apply, and you may need the written
statement of a doctor or medical professional.
Likewise, the latest Stimulus Package has added tax credits to the 2009 and
2010 calendar years for certain energy saving home improvements including
installing new energy efficient windows, doors, certain types of roofs, heating
and air conditioning units. You can use up to 30% of the
cost of any project as a tax credit, with a total of up to $1,500.
For example, installing $6,000 worth of solar panels on your home may
qualify you for the maximum $1,500 tax credit at the end of the year.
In addition, some states and even some utility companies offer additional
money-saving and tax incentives for making your home more energy efficient.
Obviously, not all home improvements are eligible for a tax deduction.
You should talk to an income tax professional or research some of the details
surrounding home improvement tax deductions before you embark on any
home upgrade or remodeling project.
You obviously may not be able to afford all of these projects without borrowing
some money, but even certain home improvement loans can lower your taxes if
the money is borrowed against the mortgage or equity in your home.
If you take out a home equity loan specifically for home improvements you can
often use the interest you pay on the loan as a tax deduction. This is an option
that is available with only certain types of home improvement loans. Each year
the loan is open and you pay interest on the loan is another year you can deduct
that interest amount from your taxable income in some cases.
Again, before you perform any home improvement or apply for any type of home
improvement loan for tax reasons you should definitely speak with a qualified tax
accountant to make sure your home improvement plans and loans are going to follow
the letter of the law and be eligible for the greatest tax deductions or tax credits.
Fixed Rate vs Variable Rate Home Improvement Loans
When you’re applying for almost any type of home improvement loan you’re
eventually faced with the question of whether the loan will be a fixed rate loan or
whether the interest rate charged will be variable. The difference between the two
types of loans could save you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars over the life
of your home improvement loan.
Let’s first talk about how a typical home improvement loan from a bank or lending
institution works. Let’s say you borrow $10,000 to build a new deck on your home.
You pay back the loan over time, but you also pay a little extra money, called interest,
that is agreed upon when the loan is signed. This interest is essentially the profit that
the bank makes for loaning the money to you. If you borrow $10,000 and agree to
pay it back over 5 years (plus interest) then at the end of those five years you may
actually have paid $13,000 or more. Sometimes the rate of interest through the life
of the loan stays the same, but sometimes that rate goes up or down and can
dramatically affect your monthly payment.
Fixed Rate Home Improvement Loans: When interest rates are low it’s often
smart to go with a fixed rate loan because the chances of the rate going up are greater
than the changes of them going down. Lower interest rates mean you can borrow more
money and pay less interest, which is obviously a good thing for consumers who want
a cheap home improvement loan. Fixed rate home improvement loans are usually
designed so that every monthly payment is exactly the same through the life of the loan.
This is good because it means there won’t be any surprises. The rate you can get on
a fixed rate home improvement loan is often based on your past credit history,
whether it’s a secured or unsecured loan and the amount of the loan and payment length.
Variable Rate Home Improvement Loans: Some home improvement loans can have a
variable rate of interest which means the interest rate of the loan changes as interest rates in
the market place go up and down. Banks generally like variable interest rate loans because
there’s always the chance that interest rates will go up, increasing their profits and your
payments on the loan. So why would you choose a variable rate loan at all? Banks will
often offer a slightly lower rate to entice customers to use them. Variable rate home
improvement loans are often still good loans and can be great ways to fix up your home.
Sometimes a variable rate loan will actually cost much less than a fixed rate loan if the
interest rates go down over the life of the loan.
While different home improvement loans offer different payment terms you can sometimes
even refinance a home improvement loan if you find the payment terms to be not to your liking.
Whether you get a fixed rate or variable rate home improvement loan is a completely
personal choice that depends upon the market conditions of tha time, your individual loan
needs and your personal credit history.
The Best Home Improvement Credit Card
Using a credit card to pay for a home remodel, repair or upgrade is one of the
easiest and quickest ways to get a home improvement loan, but it’s not always
easy picking out the best home improvement credit card for you. There are lots
of credit cards available that are specifically geared towards home improvements,
but it’s sometimes difficult to decide which credit card is the best one to you for
your particular home project or even if you should use a credit card at all.
The advantages to using a
home improvement credit
card are usually pretty obvious:
you usually can get credit card
points or special financing rates
for using your credit card on
certain types of home improvement
purchases, including home appliances,
tools, materials and more.
And you can often get a credit card
with an initial interest rate of around
7 or 8% depending
on your credit history.
With a home improvement
credit card you usually have a fixed credit limit
like $5,000 but you don’t have to use that
entire amount of money. You can only charge
what you need at the time and then pay off that amount, leaving the credit
card open for other home improvements down the line.
When you go looking for a home improvement credit card online you’ll immediately
notice that a lot of sites try to sell you a card right there or promote a certain card that
they get a commission on. Instead of doing that we’re going to give tell you about the
things you should consider when you are looking at home improvement credit cards.
Ultimately the best home improvement credit card for you is the one that fits your
individual situation and needs. Here are the different types of home improvement
credit cards available in no particular order:
Home Improvement Reward or Points Credit Cards: There are lots of these
“rewards” credit cards available from thousands of different banks. They generally
work in one of two ways. They either give you credit card “points” which can be
redeemed for home improvement items such as appliances or home contractor services
or they give you special rates and incentives to use the card for home improvement
projects and purchases. Most bank home improvement cards do a mix of both.
Most bank home improvement credit cards are ultimately just Visa or MasterCard
cards that can really be used anywhere and not just at home improvement
or hardware stores.
These reward cards can be good for home improvements, but you have to read the
fine print to see what sort of fees are involved, whether or not the points “expire” after
a certain period of time and what the rate of point accrual really is. If you need to spend
$5,000 to receive a $10 gift certificate then that home improvement credit card is hardly
worth it.
You also have to be careful to pick a rewards card that has rewards you actually want.
I have a neighbor who signed up for a GM Rewards card thinking that he’d remodel
his kitchen with the credit card and then use the points to get a discount on a new truck.
After his kitchen was done being upgraded he want truck shopping and ended up buying.
A used Chrysler PT Cruiser! All those GM points went to waste because he was tied
into those points and ultimately didn’t want to use them. Most reward credit cards now
have multiple options for rewards so you can still get gift certificates and travel bonuses
even if that’s not your primary reward point system. A rewards card could be the best
home improvement credit card for you if your project is big enough to earn points and
rewards that you know you will use.
A Money Back Credit Card: Some credit card, like the Discover Card, will actually
send you a check for a percentage of the money you spent in a certain time period.
These are good cards if you know you’re going to use your credit card for a home
improvement project and don’t want to bother accumulating points or worrying
about whether or not you’ll be able to actually use your reward in the future.
Most money back credit cards send you money either when your rebate hits a
certain limit or after a specified period of time. The percentage you get back can also
vary based on what you purchase. Some credit cards give you more money back for
buying things like auto supplies, gas, groceries or other items with it. A cash back
amount of 1% or 2% is usually pretty good for these money back credit cards.
It may not sound like much, but it adds up quickly!
A Home Depot Credit Card: If you happen to have a Home Depot nearby
that you can use for your home improvement, then this might be a better choice
than a rewards card because you may save more money in the end.
The Home Depot offers a lot of different home contractor services, so you may
be able to actually have someone come in and do all the work and buy all the
materials from The Home Depot. The Home Depot card is a popular home
improvement credit card because they have a zero interest and no payments
policy for six months on purchases of $299 or more. You just
use the The Home Depot credit card for your entire home improvement or
remodelling project and then pay the balance off as you see fit. This could be
the best home improvement credit card for you if you think you’ll be able to pay
off most of the balance in six months and like the idea of getting an interest-free hom
e improvement loan during that time.
A Lowe’s Home Improvement Store Credit Card: If you typically shop at the Lowe’s Home Improvement Store chain rather than The Home Depot then you may want to consider several different credit card options from Lowe’s. They have a regular consumer Lowe’s credit card as well as a Lowe’s Project credit card. Each are aimed towards home improvement purchases for the consumer,
but they have different payment terms and options, including a six month no
interest option just like the Home Depot card. Like the Home Depot, Lowe’s
offers a number of home improvement and remodeling contractor services as
well as home improvement materials and tools. A credit card from Lowe’s
may be the best option for you if you have a Lowe’s nearby and you plan
to do most of your home upgrade purchases there.
Other Home Improvement or Hardware Store Credit Cards: Lowe’s
Hardware Store and The Home Depot are obviously not the only home
improvement and hardware stores in town. Many smaller hardware store chains
offer their own credit cards and home improvement financing plans that can be
just as competitive as the big stores. Some smaller home improvement store credit
cards offer very low rates with longer zero interest payment terms. I’ve seen small
hardware store chains offer 10%-20% off large purchases just for using their home
improvement credit cards. Deals like this are not uncommon because it helps the
smaller hardware and home improvement stores undercut the larger chains and
bring in more business. If you’re going to use a small local store or if you can get
some decent deals at a chain hardware store in your area then a home improvement
credit card from that hardware store chain may be your best option.
Obviously knowing how much your home improvement will cost and where you’re going
to purchase most of the materials and labor from will be very helpful. I strongly suggest
going to different stores and getting free quotes on your home improvement project before
applying for any specific home improvement credit card.
A home improvement credit card is essentially an unsecured loan that’s easy to use for
home repairs and improvements where you don’t know exactly how much money
you’ll need. If you have good credit and you’re looking for a home improvement loan
of a specific amount, then you might want to try a low rate Lending Club home
improvement loan.
It’s a quick and easy loan service that can get you the money you need quickly and easily.
They’re free to join and have an online application, so you don’t have anything to lose.
They’re a safe and secure company to deal with and they’ve won a lot of rewards for
their loan service. If you want more information you can read our mini
review of Lending Club. Now you know what to consider when looking for the
best home improvement credit for your situation. You can now weigh the pros
and cons and ultimately feel confident when you fill out that credit card application
that you are getting the best home improvement credit card for you!
Pay Off Your Home Improvement Loan With A Tax Refund
It is estimated that over 70% of all Americans get an income tax refund each year due
to overpaying their income taxes on salaries, paychecks and other forms of income
throughout the calendar year, and that money can go a long way towards paying off
any existing home improvement loans you may have. And while loaning the
government extra money is generally not a great way to get rich, there is an
undeniable feeling of satisfaction in getting a large tax-free check from the
government each spring!
One of the best ways to use that money effectively is to
pay down an outstanding home improvement loan that you may have opened
in the previous year. Here’s how this might work:
Let’s say in 2008 you applied for a home equity loan to perform add an addition
on your house or to improve your home. For the sake of argument we’ll say that
you took out a $10,000 home improvement loan in early 2008.
This home upgrade will probably increase the value of your home which may
allow you to borrow money for more home improvements in the future.
As the work on your home progresses and as you pay off your loan you are
also paying some interest on the monthly loan payment. The interest might be
around 6%. The interest that you pay on your home improvement loan in 2008
can often be used as a deduction on your 2008 income tax. So if you paid $500
in interest then in many cases you can deduct that from your gross 2008 income,
which ultimately means you get a larger tax refund for 2008.
In 2009 you can then use your income tax refund to help pay down your
home improvement loan, effectively getting rid of some of your debt.
By taking out a loan for a home improvement in one year and using the tax
refund from the next year to help pay it off you can sometimes afford to continually
be improving your home while reducing the income taxes you owe and increasing the
equity in your home.
Most home improvements cannot be used as a tax credit, but there are some
exceptions to this, especially when it comes to home upgrades that are needed for a
medical condition or for special energy saving home improvement project.
Generally the interest paid on a home improvement loan or line of credit can
be deducted from your income for tax purposes as long as the money is indeed
used to improve your house.
Obviously, every tax and income situation is different and you may want to consult
with a qualified tax professional to make sure this method of paying down home
improvement loans will work for you.
If you don’t have any equity or extra value in your home, but you need to upgrade
or perform some improvements around your house, then you may be able to
get a no equity improvement loan from a number of different sources.
These no equity home improvement loans are a growing segment of the loan
market ever since housing prices started to tumble. First, lets explain how
equity and home improvement loans work.
Let’s say you bought your home two years ago for $250,000. You’ve paid
off $10,000 worth of the mortgage, which means you only owe $240,000 at
the moment. If the value of your home remained at $250,000 then you would
have $10,000 in equity. If the value of your home rose to $260,000 then you
would have $20,000 in equity. The problem facing a lot of people is that their
home values actually went down instead of up with this economic recession,
causing people to lose all their equity. Many people actually ended up “upside
down” in their mortgage where they owe more on their mortgage than their
house is worth. These people have no equity to secure an improvement loan.
Most people who have been in their homes for a couple years start noticing things
that need improving or upgrading as time goes on. Roofs get old and leak, siding
needs to be upgraded, windows and doors need to be replaced, furnaces break
and there are hundreds of others expensive repairs and improvements than can
require a home improvement loan to pay for even if you don’t have any
equity in your house.
Traditionally the equity in your home served as the collateral to getting a home
improvement loan. This is called
a secure home improvement loan, which is different from an unsecured home improvement loan.
If you don’t have any equity in your home, then you can get a no equity improvement
loan through one of these other means:
Apply For an FHA Loan: FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loans are government
backed loans (given out by banks and mortgage lenders) that are designed to help people
obtain a mortgage that they wouldn’t normally be able to afford.
There are even some new FHA programs like the FHA-Secure program that was
implemented in 2007 to help people who have been hurt by the housing crisis and there
are even FHA Title I loans specifically designed for home improvements.
An FHA loan can replace an existing mortgage that will allow you to consolidate bills
without requiring additional equity. There are some rules you need to qualify, but the
best way to find out if you’re eligible is to fill out an application and work with a home
loan company you’ve heard of before.
Offer Collateral In Place of Home Equity: If you want to get a secured loan then
you can offer something to the bank that has value if you default on the loan. It could be
a boat or a car or even some sort of antique or other valuable piece of merchandise that
you don’t want to sell, but could be used to secure your improvement loan.
Consider A Home Improvement Credit Card: If you’re the do-it-yourself type or
if you know you can pay for the service through a hardware and home improvement
store like the Home Depot or Lowe’s Home Improvement stores, then consider a
home improvement credit card. No home equity is needed and there are lots of
different payment options and cards available. There are a number of
low interest credit cards from Lowe’s and you can even
get an interest free credit card from The Home Depot.
Try A No Equity Improvement Loan from a Local Bank: Many local banks,
unlike large national banks, are still doing well and lending money to loyal
customers without many issues. If you’re going to work with your local bank,
then you’ll need to do your homework and be prepared to show that your home
still has value even if there isn’t much equity in it. You can follow
these tips for getting a home improvement loan from a bank.
These are all valid options and ways you can easily apply for and obtain a
no equity improvement loan.
You may also want to read our Home Improvement Loan Primer if you’re
unfamiliar with how different types of improvement loans work or if you’re
not sure about how you could really qualify for an improvement loan with no equity.
If you’ve been paying attention to the news then you’ve heard a few conflicting
reports about what is happening in the home improvement and financial markets.
Here’s a quick explanation and analysis of what they could mean for you if you’re
thinking about looking into a home improvement loan in the next several months:
International home improvement giant The Home Depot announced that they will be
closing some of its stores and laying off nearly 7,000 employees. This sounds like
awful news until you look a little further: the stores that The Home Depot will be
closing consist of 34 Expo Design Center stores, 5 YardBIRDS stores, two Design
Center stores and seven HD Bath stores. Those are all specialty stores with a lot of
competition from local and smaller vendors. The Home Depot admitted that their Expo
centers weren’t even doing well when the economy was good and there was a strong
housing market. All the specialty stores affected will go into liquidation starting today,
so there are some great home improvement deals to be found!
While the loss of jobs in the home improvement industry is never good, the recent cuts
by The Home Depot show that their core business: discounted and affordable DIY
home improvement supplies are still relatively strong because The Home Depot is not
planning to cut any of those stores. This means that, essentially, home improvements
are still a profitable and growing business and it means
your Home Depot Credit Card can probably buy even more things for less money.
Our second bit of “bad news” comes from a report which says that housing sale prices
dropped 9.3% to $198,600 in 2008. The prices haven’t been that low since 2004.
This sounds like bad news until you hear that sales of existing homes actually rose
6.5% in December, which is traditionally a slow month for home sales anyway.
What does all this mean? It means that while existing homes did lose some of their
value in 2008, the latest December numbers show that there is plenty of housing
credit now available and it means that plenty of people are still borrowing money
to buy homes. Because these are existing homes, a lot of that borrowed money
will obviously be used to improve, customize or otherwise upgrade those homes.
All in all it means that the credit market for small home improvement loans is clearly
thawing and moving again.
Overall, if you bought your home before 2004 and if you’re looking for some good
ways to stretch the money from a recent home improvement loan a little further, then
this is all pretty good news for you. If you aren’t in one of those situations, then hang
in there, the financial loan markets are opening up slowly. Your best bet for borrowing
money to remodel or add on to your home may still lie in
borrowing money from a local bank that hasn’t been negatively affected by some of the
larger financial institution failings.
More helpful articles about home improvement loans:
Zero Percent Home Improvement Financing With The Home Depot Credit Card
Finance Your Home Improvements With Gift Cards
FHA Title I Home Improvement Loan
If you’ve ever looked into getting any sort of loan for a mortgage or home improvement project you’ve probably heard talk about the Federal Reserve rate and how you may want to wait or move at a specific moment. But what does all this really mean? How can some big government institution like the Federal Reserve actually affect the rate of a home remodeling loan that you might apply for?
The Federal Reserve Board is government organization which does a number of important things, but one of the most high-profile monetary tasks of the Federal Reserve is to, in it’s words:
Open market operations–purchases and sales of U.S. Treasury and federal agency securities–are the Federal Reserve’s principal tool for implementing monetary policy… The federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions lend balances at the Federal Reserve to other depository institutions overnight. Essentially, the Federal Reserve controls the rate at which banks and other lending institutions can borrow money themselves. Banks and other financial institutions that lend money for mortgages, home equity, and home improvement loans can then adjust the loans they sell up or down so that they can still make money.
Here’s an over-simplified example: if a bank can borrow $10,000 at 4.00% interest then they might be willing to offer you a $10,000 loan for a home remodel at 6.00% interest. As you repay the loan at 6.00% the bank would take the extra you paid, keep it as profit, and pay back the 4.00% on the loan. Essentially, the bank you borrowed money from is like a retail store with money: it “buys” money at 4.00% and it sells it to you at 6.00%.
This means that when the Federal Reserve rate is low you, as a home owning consumer, usually get better mortgage, home equity and home improvement loan rates. Of course, banks also have to worry about other things like loan default rates, paying employees, other market investments it may have and a variety of other things, so the rate at which they offer a home remodeling loan may fluctuate a fair bit from one day to the next.
Generally, when the Federal Reserve Board lowers rates most consumer loan rates, including home equity and home improvement loan rates, drop down a little bit. Likewise, when the Federal Reserve Board raises rates, loan rates go up.
Right now the Federal Reserve rate is at a historic low, which is just one of the many reasons why it’s a good time to get a home improvement loan.
It’s also important to note that the change in rates is not always immediate. Most experts in the financial industry say that it takes at least a week or two for banks to begin properly adjusting their rates and gauging market conditions before you may see the rates on things like mortgages and home improvement loans go up or down.
Obviously, your credit score, income and current home value will also play a part in whether or not you can get a good rate on a home improvement loan. The best way to find out more is to use a free home improvement loan calculator that can give you all the rates and details that apply to your specific financial circumstances.
Finance Your Home Improvements With Gift Cards
If you’re planning a big home improvement in the next couple of months, then one of the best gifts you can ask for from friends and family is a gift card to help you finance your home improvement! Big stores like Lowe’s hardware stores and Home Depot hardware stores offer all sorts of custom gift cards for just about any amount imaginable.
Home improvement financing with gift cards is a great way to give friends and family a chance to help you with your home improvements, whether it’s a much-needed home repair or simply a house upgrade you’ve been planning and saving a long time for.
Giving gift cards for home improvement projects is becoming common practice when people buy a new home or have a house warming party. Holidays and birthdays are close behind in reasons people buy gift cards to home improvement stores, but the reasons are really unlimited. As housing equity falls and people are stuck in the middle of home improvements without any way to pay for them, it makes sense to ask for gift cards that can help.
Obviously gift cards to places like Lowe’s hardware stores and The Home Depot are only good at those stores, but even if you give someone a gift card to one store they can easily be traded and exchanged for gift cards to other places for the same amount at numerous other places.
I’ve seen entire home improvement projects financed with gift cards from hardware stores. I know a woman who moved into a new home with a bathroom that was in terrible need of an upgrade. She had a house warming party and she purposely asked that people bring gift cards to the Lowe’s hardware store instead of bring bottles of wine or candles or anything else. She used all her gift cards and combined with the discounts she received from applying for a Lowe’s credit card she financed her bathroom upgrade and completely paid off the entire home improvements in just two months!
The best part of about using gift cards to help you with home improvement financing is that you can use the money for materials, labor, home improvement books or just about anything else those large hardware stores sell.
This means that you can not only use gift cards as part of your home improvement financing plan, but also as a way to buy new home improvement tools and materials. If you’re going to save some money on your home improvements then you’re probably going to plan to do it yourself and you probably don’t want your Aunt Bertha going out and picking a table saw for you. If she gives you a home improvement gift card, though, you can pick out exactly the saw you want without worrying about her picking the wrong model.
Financing a home improvement with gift cards is clearly another great way to help someone, or have others help you, easily pay for a home improvement
Financing Your Home Improvements May Solve Economic Crisis
With the housing crisis not getting any better in the United States and the world economy in turmoil a lot of people are confused about exactly what they should be doing, especially with regard to paying for that home improvement they had planned. One of the ways to help fix the economy and begin raising values, however, is with a large push towards small home improvements, largely financed on a personal basis.
 Let’s examine the problems we have now. Housing values were high for a long time, but the housing bubble burst and values began dropping, leaving a lot of people without extra equity in their home. This meant that home improvements and home improvement loans stalled, which put a strain on a lot of companies rely on providing materials and products for new and upgraded homes. While the banks were losing money on the defaulted mortgages, the home improvement companies and the production facilities that make products for homes also started failing due to the slowdown. Stock prices are tied to company performance, so they obviously went down, too. Everything was tied together and it all started with the housing market grinding to a standstill.
Now we’re in a credit crunch and banks still don’t want to loan large amounts of money for home sales, but small loans, like those used to pay for and finance small home improvement projects, are still readily available from a number of places. You can still go down to your local Lowe’s and get a credit card and you can always finance your small home improvements through a personal loan from a local bank. And since these small personal home loans are still available, it means you can play a major part in reviving the economy and helping the housing market grow again.
Here’s how this will work:
The one way you can make sure that your home sells for more money is to put more upgrades and improvements into it. While some people may have cash on hand or even some home equity to do this, a better way is to finance your home improvements with a small loan. By using a small loan to pay for your home improvement you are helping to move money around and you will likely be able to afford more upgrades initially.
These upgrades and home improvements will raise your home value, but they will also increase the need for home products and services, which will increase the need for manufacturing to increase and will increase the number of jobs that need to be created to keep those companies meeting the demand for their products. As the demand for home products and services continues to rise, more people will have better jobs and more money and will be able to put more money towards buying a home! Your home, with all of its improvements, will naturally be worth more money and can be sold for a higher price and will have more equity built up in it if you need to borrow again in the future.
Imagine if every homeowner in America started upgrading their homes with money borrowed from some of the many home improvement financing options available out there! We’d suddenly have thousands of jobs and lots of home equity and value being created!
In fact, President-Elect Barak Obama recently announced his plans to form a large public works package which will essentially do exactly this, but on a larger scale. Instead of focusing on home improvements, he’s focusing on city and state infrastructure improvements. The more improvements that are done the more jobs there will be and with more jobs comes a stronger economy.
By financing that home improvement you’re not only increasing the value of your own home, but potentially helping other people keep their jobs and actually helping the entire world’s economy to grow stronger.
Some Home Improvements That Are Worth Financing
There are lots of large scale home improvements you can perform on your home. Some of those improvements will make your home a much nicer place to spend your time or even make it a safer place to live, but not all large home improvements are necessarily worth the amount of money you put into them.
 Some Home Improvements Help You Sell Your Home For More Money
A home improvement that requires a loan to complete will definitely make your house a more comfortable place to live but a truly worthwhile home improvement will also increase the value of your home in one of two ways. It will either make your home more desirable on the resale market or it will in some way save you enough money to make up for the loan itself.
Some of the home improvements that will increase resale value are fairly obvious. Updating bathrooms and kitchens always help a home look more attractive and help it sell for more money. Even minor things such as a fresh coat of paint, crown molding and new window treatments can give a house the perception of being worth more money when it is being sold.
Some Home Improvements Pay for Themselves
Not so obvious are the improvements that will save you money over time and actually pay for themselves. Most of these sort of house upgrades are improvements designed to help your home use energy more efficiently so that you have much lower utility bills.
One of the most expensive home improvements, but also one that has the most potential to save you money in the long run is installing solar panels on your roof and generating your own electricity. The initial cost for solar panels can run into the thousands, so a home improvement loan is almost always in order, but over the life of the solar panels you may generate so much electricity that you’ll not only not have any electric bills, but the electrical company may actually send you a check if you sell your electricity back to them.
Of course, solar panels won’t work for every home or in every climate. On a much smaller scale you can move from generating your own electricity to at least trying to save some money on your heating and cooling bills.
New insulation in the ceilings and walls of an older home can go a long way towards reducing utility bills. Depending upon your home’s current energy efficiency a few thousand dollars worth of new insulation can reduce your bills dramatically and save you hundreds every year on electricity and heating fuel. The same goes for replacing old drafy windows and doors.
Yes, the cost up front for new insulation or replacing windows and doors is not cheap, but you could take out a small home improvement loan to pay for the projects and probably begin seeing utility bill savings almost immediately!
If you’re looking to improve your home in some way with either basic repairs, some minor upgrades or even a complete remodel then you may need to consider getting a loan to pay for both the labor and materials involved. With the credit markets slowing down and with a lot of homes not having much equity it may initially be difficult to borrow the money you need for that home improvement project.
 That being said, many local banks are still an excellent place to borrow money from because many smaller banks did not make the risky investments in real estate and financial mortgage products that larger banks did. Even if you don’t have any equity in home, you can still look into borrowing money for your home improvement through an unsecured home improvement bank loan.
Again, smaller local banks are your best bet for this because they have a vested interest in helping the community that surrounds them become more desirable. Many small local banks also have slightly looser lending practices when it comes to unsecured loan, especially those designed to fix up a house. Some banks give their loan officers much more autonomy when it comes to making decisions about who gets a loan and who doesn’t. This is especially helpful if you want a home improvement loan but have a bad credit rating.
When you go to apply for an unsecured loan for a home improvement you’re going to want to do a few things to improve your chances of getting the loan.
Have A Detailed Construction Plan: When you go to the bank and ask for an unsecured loan you’re going to want to have as much information as possible about the improvements you hope to do to your home. You’ll want to have photos of your home, include a reason for why you need or want the work to be done and you’ll want to try to compare your home to the others around it. If three of your neighbors replaced their roofs in the last two years and you need to do the same then mention that, especially if all your homes were built around the same time.
Have Home Improvement Quotes From Contractors: Most banks won’t just give you a large unsecured personal loan based on your word of what a job will cost. You’ll want to have at least two or three complete price quotes from contractors who are willing to do the job. It may be helpful to also have them include the full scope of work, ranges of pricing, references they’ve worked for in the past and even include an approximate time frame for the work to get done. All of this will help a bank decide if the unsecured loan they’re going to give you will be used wisely.
Dress Well: This seems like an obvious one, but you’re going to be asking someone for a large amount of money so that you can improve your house. The least you can do is dress well, speak well and generally try to give a good impression.
Bring Proof of Income: This will probably be required anyway, and you’ll probably have to fill out plenty of paperwork just to apply for the loan. Having a steady job, living in the neighborhood for an extended period of time and even using the bank for your own savings anc checking accounts are all things that may convince a bank to give you a loan to improve your home.
Generally, try to be prepared and ready for questions when you apply for your unsecured loan from a bank. Don’t be discouraged if the first bank you meet with turns you down. Call another bank, making an appointment with a loan officer and try again. Each time you give your presentation and explain your need you’ll be more confident and more prepared to answer the loan officer’s questions.
Whether you have a small or large home improvement job planned you’ll be much better off and greatly improve your chances of getting that loan if you present your need well and show how improving your home is a solid investment for the bank you’re working with.
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Three Sources of Home Improvement Loans During This Economic Downturn
The last few weeks have been rough on banks, financial lending institutions and other companies which typically loan out money to homeowners for all sorts of loans, including loans that can be used for home improvement.
The simple fact is that many people lost a lot of their home equity with the collapse of the housing bubble and now many larger banks are stuck in a cycle of distrust when it comes to lending money to consumers and even each other. This means that if you need financing for a home improvement project or you need to borrow money to fix something in your house you may find that traditional big name mortgage and equity companies as well as national banks may not be able or willing to work with you.
There is hope, however. There are still some ways you can borrow the money you need to improve or add to your home without having to worry too much about the economic crisis that is hitting many institutions across the country.
Local Banks: Many of the national banks have been hit hard because they either directly or indirectly invested in subprime lending products which are now evaporating in value. Many small local banks avoid investing in risky enterprises and therefore are still doing very well. Local banks are more willing to help customers with home improvement loans because it’s helping community members improve the neighborhood and overall community, which leads to more people staying near the bank and using its services in the future.
Home Improvement Store Credit Cards: Big box hardware stores are suffering and need people to buy their products and keep their stores in business. One way they can sell more items is to offer competitive rates on their credit cards to keep people coming into their stores. Because these cards can often only be used at the stores that issued them these cards basically ensure that the hardware store will do well. Some hardware store credit cards like The Home Depot credit card even has a 0% interest rate for a limited time, so they are definitely worth looking into.
Financing Through Private Contractors: When the number of home improvements are down due to a slow economy some of the people who suffer the most are the people who make a living working and improving homes. Roofers, electricians, plumbers and even landscapers are all reporting lower sales. Many of these contractors and self-employed workers will gladly offer payment plans to you for their services. They would rather be paid a little bit over each month and get the job of working on your home than risk not getting any work at all because no one can afford their services outright. Each contractor is different, obviously, but you’d be amazed at how flexible some home improvement professionals can be when it comes to payment.
Just because the economy is taking a downturn doesn’t mean you can’t still improve your house and live in the home of your dreams.
When most people think of home improvement what home improvement is they think of all the little things around the house that they can improve or fix on their own without having to borrow money from a bank. But many home improvement projects require some sort of financing because they are large scale projects that require a large sum of money all at once. These larger home improvement projects require some sort of bank or lender issued home improvement money.
Larger home improvement projects that require financing could including adding an addition to your home, remodeling your home, upgrading the appliances and kitchen or bathroom, installing a new central air conditioner or furnace, replacing a roof or installing siding or simply putting in a new swimming pool.
There are two general types of home improvement financing. There is an unsecured home improvement loan and a secured home improvement loan. When you are first looking at home financing you will have decide if you want a secured or unsecured loan. The differences are many, but here’s a general breakdown:
Unsecured Home Improvement Financing: An unsecured loan of any type is a loan you are taking out without any sort of collateral. Only your credit rating and income level are really considered for loan of this type. Home improvement credit cards fall into the unsecured home improvement financing category. Unsecured home improvement loans are meant to be paid back over a short period of time and will generally have a higher interest rate. The advantage to unsecured home improvement financing is you don’t need to have a home that has a lot of equity or “value above the purchasing price” to get this type of home improvement loan.
Secured Home Improvement Financing: A secured loan of any type is a loan which is backed with collateral, or something to trade, in exchange for the loan. For home improvement financing purposes that is almost always your home itself and any equity or extra value the home may now have. If you purchased a home for $100,000 but it will now easily sell for $150,000 then you have $50,000 in equity or value that you can use to finance home improvement projects. Secured home improvement loans have a lower interest rate and usually have a longer payoff period.
Don’t despair if you have bad credit and wish to finance a home improvement project. Even people with bad credit can get a home improvement loan if they follow a few common sense steps and are willing to pay a higher interest rate or borrow a little less money than they might normally want to borrow.
If you’re serious about borrowing some money for those needed home improvements, then you should definitely consider using a free no-obligation home improvement loan calculator to find out exactly what kind of loan terms you may qualify for. The process doesn’t cost you any more than a few minutes of your time and it helps you get an idea of how big of a home project or remodeling you can afford.
When You Should Not Get a Home Improvement Loan
A lot of sites try to push the idea of getting a home improvement loan for just about any home improvement you have planned or any financial situation you’re in. Financial websites, banks and other lenders with a vested interest in making money off your loan. There are times, however, when financing a home improvement project is simply not a good idea. You need to make sure you don’t fall into one of these traps:
Small Home Improvement Project: A small home improvement project may not actually end up costing you all that much. Simple things like having your home painted or replacing a screen door or even some very basic landscaping may only cost one or two hundred dollars. While that is still an expense worth considering, it probably isn’t enough to really warrant the time and energy to be spent on getting a personal loan or even a home improvement credit card to pay for. You may be able to work out a schedule payment plan with the contractor doing the work or if you’re doing it yourself you may be able to buy the materials over time, softening the financial impact on your wallet. There are lots of online resources for Do-It-Yourself (DIY) home improvement projects.
You Have the Cash to Pay for Your Home Improvement Project: If the home improvement project you have in mind is fairly expensive but you happen to have the money on hand or in savings then you may want to consider skipping the home improvement project financing and simply paying for the project out of your cash reserves. Remember that any sort of financing or loan you get for a home improvement actually increases the cost of your project with application fees and interest collected over time.
Your Monthly Home Improvement Loan Payments Are Too Expensive: Let’s face it, if you can’t afford the monthly payments on your home improvement loan then it probably isn’t worth going for financing. You need to consider all your monthly expenses and try to figure out if you have enough money at the end of a typical month to make regular payments on the loan you took out. It is important that you consider several different types of loans because each loan will have different advantages, disadvantages and monthly payment amounts. You can use a free, no-obligation home improvement loan calculator to figure out exactly how much your payments might be and to see different financing scenarios.
You’re Selling Your House or Moving Soon: If you plan on selling your house or you’ve already sold your house then there is usually not a need to spend a large amount of money on home improvement projects unless you think the home improvement will help sell your house. A lot of people take out small home improvement loans to fix up their home just enough to help it sell in this tough housing market. The idea of using popular home improvements to sell your home is a not a new one.
Obviously home improvement loans can help you maintain your home’s present value and even increase the current value depending upon the improvements you have planned. If the project you have planned is a larger project, if you don’t have the money readily available but you know you can definitely afford the monthly payments then a home improvement loan may be your key to making your home a much more comfortable place for you and your family to live!
Why It Is Easier To Get Home Improvement Loans Now
If you’ve been putting off that big home improvement project because you just didn’t have the money to pay for it then you may want to start considering your home improvement financing options now. There are several driving market forces which means it may be easier than ever for you to borrow money, especially for home improvement projects.
Slow House Sales Are Hurting Home Contractors: I don’t need to tell you that the housing market is in a slump, which means home sales and new home construction are way down. This means that contractors aren’t working as much and can’t charge outrageous prices anymore due to the simple law of supply and demand. Many contractors are beginning to offer their own home improvement project financing. When home prices gown down then home improvement prices also go down because more contractors have to competitively bid against one another for less jobs. This is good news if you have a big home improvement job planned because it means you can solicit multiple bids and get a smaller home improvement loan than you may have once needed.
Equity For Home Improvements is Dropping: Many people have homes whose value has actually fallen over the last six months or so, which means people are no longer taking equity out of their home and spending it on cars and boats and other luxuries quite as often. However, many people do still have lots of equity left over from the housing bubble and home improvement loan lenders may more easily offer home improvement financing on projects that are proven to increase home values over time.
Fall Is A Slow Time For Home Improvement Projects and Financing: Each year home improvement contractors get ready for the slump of projects in the fall. Kids go back to school, summer is over an the holidays are right around the corner. Many home improvement stores and contractors start lowering prices to sell off inventory and many also start offering special deals on all sorts of home improvement financing offers.
Home Improvement Stores are Are Offering Zero Percent Financing: Lowe’s and The Home Depot have had lackluster sales, so they are both offering zero percent interest home improvement credit cards. Lowe’s has a zero percent credit card offer that is for a limited time, while The Home Depot’s credit card always has a zero percent option for six months on purchases over a certain amount.
All these different factors are making home improvement loans and financing much easier to come by for the average American. As the economy begins to pick up and the housing market begins to strengthen then it will begin to get much more difficult to get great rates like zero percent on home improvement loans.
Zero Percent Home Improvement Financing With The Home Depot Credit Card
As you know by now, using a hardware store credit card for your home improvement financing can actually be a very good idea. You can use credit cards from stores like The Home Depot and Lowe’s to finance your home improvement project. They both offer credit cards to help you with your home improvement financing needs.
The Home Depot has two different consumer credit cards which you can use to pay for your home improvement projects. Both credit cards are reliable forms of home improvement financing.
Home Improvement Financing with The Home Depot Consumer Credit Card: This is the credit card that gives you six months of no payments and zero interest on all your home improvement purchases over $299. This zero interest home improvement financing offer is available all the time as long as you use your credit card. There is no annual fee on this credit card, so the zero percent home interest rate for your home improvement financing is a great deal.
Home Improvement Financing With The Home Depot Rewards MasterCard: If you’re not interested in zero percent home improvement financing but would rather get points for your home improvement purchases, then this is the credit card for you. You can improve your home and then use your reward points to buy something fun for yourself such as an HDTV. There is no annual fee on this credit card so it’s also a good choice of financing for a home improvement project.
Remember that the first Home Depot credit card option is not a home improvement financing option with zero interest forever. The zero percent interest rate only last for the initial six months after the initial Home Depot home improvement supply or service purchase. Also remember that this zero percent financing offer is only good on total purchases of $299 or up at one time.
With either of these Home Depot credit cards you need to have fairly decent credit score or you’ll end up paying higher interest once the zero interest period is over. There are some things you can do to help you get a home improvement loan if you have bad credit.
Whether you choose the zero interest home improvement credit card or the card that gives you points for your home improvement purchases the Home Depot consumer credit cards area great source of home improvement financing.
More helpful articles about home improvement loans: How To Get A Swimming Pool Loan
A Surprising Home Improvement Financing Trend
Zero Percent Home Improvement Financing With The Home Depot Credit Card
Lloyds TSB Bank recently announced there was over a 19% increase in the number of people looking to secure some sort of home improvement financing to fix up their home. The increase in applications for home improvement loans and financing took place over the first six months of 2008 when compared to the number of home improvement financing applications within the first six months of 2007.
This is unexpected news in the wake of the burst housing bubble and is in fact surprising when you consider that many homes have actually lost equity and value over the past year. What could explain this jump in interest in home improvement financing?
The bank set out to research this trend by talking to customers and agents in its branch offices. It turns out that a large number of the people applying for home improvement loans were actually people who were deciding to use the money from their home improvement financing to fix up and improve their homes in hopes of being able to sell their homes in the future.
The bank learned that about 55% of those people were actually looking at home improvements as a way to help their homes. Another 23% were planning on using the money from a home improvement loan to make their homes more comfortable and more to their liking so that in the future their home value would be greater. And nearly 59% of all those surveyed said they had pulled their home off the market for the moment and chosen instead to concentrate on getting financing for some home improvement projects.
Surprisingly, a large number of these applications for home improvement financing were actually unsecured personal home improvement loans, which is one of the home improvement financing options for people with bad credit.
In the past people were able to rely on their home prices going up automatically and being able to pull the equity out of their home for various personal reasons. Now that home prices are actually dropping people are learning that you need improve your home in order to raise your homes value. In order to make money selling your home you sometimes need to attain some sort of home improvement financing to in order to make your home stand out from the competition.
Technorati Tags: home improvement, home improvement loan, home loan, real estate, mortgage How To Get A Home Improvement Loan with Bad Credit
Home ownership is one of the great American dreams, but paying for that home is often difficult when things go wrong and your credit rating is damaged through no fault of your own. The good news is that even with bad credit you can often get that desperately needed home improvement financing!
Sometimes your home simply needs a repair or upgrade to remain safe and livable and in those times it’s best to get a responsible type of home improvement financing which can help you pay for the repairs on your home without harming your credit score even more. Most of these types of repairs require substantial amounts of money which can often come in the form of a home improvement loan or some sort of financing.
If you only need some small repairs or wish to pay for some minor home improvements, then you may be able to get a hardware store credit card for your home improvement financing, but with bad credit it will probably have a reduced limit and higher interest rate. If you are unable to get a credit card for home improvement financing then you will probably need to speak to a larger lending institution such as a bank.
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How Creative Home Improvement Financing Can Help Sell Your Home
Did you know you can use home improvement financing to actually help sell your home?
The US housing market has hit a rough patch over the past year which means that a lot of people are trying to sell their home but having a difficult time doing so. There are actually more houses on the market to be sold than there are people who want to buy houses right now (or can afford to finance a home mortgage), which means that home sellers have to lower their asking prices just to get people interested in their home. These lower home prices and lack of sales are what you want to avoid with some creative home improvement financing.
If you are trying to sell your home right now and not having much success then you may want to consider ways of using a home improvement financing to actually help you sell your current home and actually make a little more money than you might expect. This is not as difficult as it seems, especially when you know where your home improvement loan money is best spent.
First home sellers should get an idea of what other houses are selling for in their area, and take a look at the upgrades and improvements that have been done. This can usually be done with help of a real estate agent or simply a real estate website. If other people have taking out home improvement loans or financed home improvement construction then you may want to consider doing the same.
Look at the other homes. Do many of them boast new windows, new carpeting or new roofs? Is their landscaping new and pleasing to potential buyers? What about an upgraded kitchen or extra half bathroom? How about simple interior decor items like crown molding, new baseboards or fresh paint?
Some of these home improvement projects are not very expensive to complete and can really make a big impression on prospective home buyers. This is where you may need to look into some sort of home improvement financing or small home improvement loan to complete your projects. A loan as small as a few hundred dollars could help you change your home enough to attract and win over a home buyer. Here are a few suggestions in different price ranges:
Home Improvement Financing Amount of $500 - $2,500: Look at updating the interior of the home you wish to sell with fresh neutral colored paint or new crown molding and baseboards. Consider replacing vinyl if you have it in a kitchen or bathroom. For your wallpaper you may want to have a professional remove it and paint the walls a neutral color. Consider freshening up your landscaping with new plants and pruning back anything that is overgrown. Simply being able to list the terms “crown molding” and “new floors” in a home ad will attract more attention than you normally would get with a regular listing.
Home Improvement Financing Amount of $2,500 - $5,000: Fully replace worn flooring like tile or hardwood or even carpeting is a good idea at this price range. Simply having your carpets steam cleaned is a good start, but putting down new neutral colored rugs or tiling will go a long way to making a great first impression. People who walk into a home almost always make a home-buying decision within the first few minutes, so any sort of good lasting impression will help you.
Home Improvement Financing Amount of $5,000 - $10,000: This is for larger home improvement projects that could really increase your return on investment. When people look to buy a home they really like updated kitchens and bathrooms. You don’t have to choose the most expensive materials for these, but you do want to choose neutral colors that many different people may like. Updating your kitchen with stainless steel appliances or replacing your counter tops with any sort of granite will definitely bring more buyers to look at your home.
You may even want to add on another 10% - 20% of the home improvement financing costs to the price you selling your home for in an effort to recoup some of your money. Your home will almost definitely be more valuable now that you’ve done these improvements, so your price should reflect that. If you had a home improvement loan of $10,000 you may want to increase your asking amount by $12,000 or even $14,000 to account for the inevitable offer and counter-offer process that usually accompanies the buying or selling of a house.
As you can see, the money from a small home improvement loan applied to the right projects can really go a long way to selling your home. You’ll get to live in a home with new upgrades, you’ll most likely sell your home quicker and with the increased money from your house sale you’ll be able to pay off that home improvement financing almost immediately!
One of your many home improvement financing options is to use a credit card given out by the large Lowe’s home and garden store chain. Using a credit card for a home improvement loan is actually like using an unsecured loan for your home improvement financing. Lowes actually has several different credit cards to choose from so you have some options as to how your want to finance your home improvement.
Lowe’s has a Consumer Credit Card, a Business Credit Card and now a new Project Credit Card to meet just about anyone’s home improvement financing needs. Here’s quick breakdown of each card:
Home Improvement Financing through the Consumer Credit Card: Has such features as low monthly payments, exclusive home improvement financing offers from time to time, no annual fee and a sophisticated online account system which allows you to view your account, make changes to your profile and even download your purchases into Quick, MS Money or Microsoft Excel. It has a relatively high rate of interest for a home improvement loan, but because it has a higher interest rate is it probably one of the easier forms of home improvement financing to get if you have questionable or bad credit. This is credit card is designed for the person who has a lot of little home projects and needs some help with home improvement financing from time to time due to credit problems or short credit history.
Home Improvement Financing with the Project Credit Card: Designed more for larger home projects that need financing, this card offers a six month period to pay off your purchases before interest begins accruing, lower interest rates and no annual fees. It also offer the same online account features as the Consumer Card. This is ideal for people with good credit who are looking for a flexible loan to cover project costs without going to a bank for a more traditional form of home improvement financing.
Home Improvement Financing with the Business Credit Card: For the professional home improvement contractor or construction manager, this card offers competitive rates, itemize bills for easy tracking, the ability to issue multiple cards and many professional financing services. This credit card is designed for the home improvement contractor who needs a little home improvement financing of his own to buy the supplies and finish construction projects for his clients.
As always, you’ll want to read all the legal information before moving forward with financing your home improvement with credit cards. You’ll be responsible for paying back your home improvement loan, no matter how small or how large the amount. All three credit cards offered by Lowes serve a home improvement or construction loan need and serve as excellent forms of home improvement financing.
There are a lot of different ways to improve your home and there are almost as many different ways to get home improvement financing to pay for those improvements. But just as you wouldn’t use a sledgehammer to put in a tack nail, there are different types of financing that are made for different types of home improvement projects.
There are a couple different factors that you should consider when first considering applying for some sort of home improvement loan or financing. First, you should consider the size of the project and how much it will ultimately cost. Second, you should consider the time frame you’ve set aside to pay off the home improvement loan and interest associated with the borrowed money. Third, you should consider your ultimate goal you want to accomplish with your home improvement.
Here are three common sources of home improvement financing and how they should be used:
Home Improvement Credit Card - These credit cards are given out by large home improvement stores who want to make money by financing your projects and having you buy products from them at the same time. Typical projects include things like replacing kitchen cabinets, upgrading appliances, building a deck, buying tools for a workshop or other things which you may be able to do on your own. Using store credit cards for home improvement financing is best for less expensive projects that you think you’ll be able to pay off quickly. They are easy to get, but they sometimes have a higher interest rate that other types of home improvement financing.
Home Equity Loan for Home Improvement - A home equity loan allows you to receive a set amount of money which is given to you all at once based on the amount of equity or extra value you have in your home. These are better for mid-sized projects like refinishing floors, upgrading electricity or even remodeling a bathroom. They are typically used for home improvement projects in which you have to hire experts. A home equity loan is a slightly more difficult type of home improvement financing to secure but the interest rate can be fixed and lower than a home improvement credit card. Using a home equity loan as form of home improvement financing may allow the interest you pay on the loan to be deducted on your income taxes.
Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) - Sometimes a little more work than a home equity loan to get, a home equity line of credit allows you to write checks and charge against the amount of equity in your home. This can be a fixed or variable rate and it’s best for larger projects where you may not even know the cost of the home improvement project. A home equity line of credit is the perfect home improvement financing vehicle for upgrading your furnace or central air conditioner, installing a pool, remodeling a kitchen or adding an addition if you have enough equity. Like a home equity loan the interest you pay on form of home improvement financing may be tax deductible and can be paid over a longer period of time.
Finally, you need to consider what you hope to accomplish with your home improvement project. If you are hoping to improve your home and increase its value so that you can turn around and sell it then you may want to stick with the home improvement credit card for financing your home improvement projects, especially if it has a low or zero percent interest rate for a short period of time. If you don’t plan on moving and simply want to improve your home for your own benefit then you might want to consider one of the other types of home improvement financing.
Whatever you do, remember to do your research and plan ahead before moving forward with one of the many different types of home improvement financing options available.
If you’ve ever seriously looked at financing a home improvement project, you know how expensive it can be so. Construction supplies, hiring a qualified contractor and various fees for permits can quickly add up. Most people can’t afford a large project to remodel or add an addition to their home without some form of home improvement financing.
Banks can often give out home improvement loans, but banks expect you to pay back not only the loan, but also the interest accrued on the loan. Though interest rates are still relatively low, they amount of interest you pay can still be stunning. A $10,000 bathroom remodel may actually end up costing you $15,000 by the time you’ve paid back all the interest. Banks and tradtitional lending t not always the cheapest sorce of home improvement financing.
Instead of a traditional bank loan why not look into some of those credit cards offered by the larger home improvement store chains? As long as you have decent credit and a plan to pay them back, it’s usually an option worth considering.
Those credit cards have several distinct advantages:
Zero Interest on your home improvement financing for a Limited Time: Many of those big chain store credit cards give you a period of six or 12 months with no interest charges as long as you use the credit card in their store to buy their home improvement products or contract their services. The Lowe’s Credit Card is famous for offering zero percent home improvement financing deals. A year without interest could save you thousands of dollars in payments depending on the size of your project!
In-Store Home Improvement Discounts: When you initially use those home improvement store credit cards you will often get a small discount as well. You might save 5% - 10% on the total cost of the project, which could be a pretty good chunk of change at the end of the day. Any form of home improvement financing that saves you money in the long run is worth considering.
All-In-One Home Improvement Financing Solution: Instead of working out your home improvement financing through one company, waiting for a check and then visiting a dozen stores to find a kitchen faucet you can go to one store to get the home improvement loan in the form of a credit card and then buy a faucet, a sink, a refrigerator, all the cabinets and even hire and schedule the installers all at one time. You don’t necessarily need a big hardware store credit card to do this, but things do seem to go much smoother this way.
How can these home improvement stores such as Lowe’s and The Home Depot offer these cards with such great rates? Traditional banks make their money by giving you a loan and charging you interest. The home improvement stores don’t have to make money on interest because they are already making a profit on you buying items from their store for retail price. These hardware stores are essentially giving you a no-interest loan for a short period of time so that you can buy more of their home improvement products and services!
It’s a sneaky type of a home improvement loan, but everyone wins! The store sells more inventory and makes more profit while the customer is able to “borrow” more money to make home improvements without having to pay any interest for a limited time! Even more enticing: most of these home improvement store credit cards have no annual fee and they have online account management options.
You can see why these cards are so popular. A limited time of no interest payments, possible discounts and the ease of ordering everything in one store makes these cards one of the easiest and most affordable forms of home improvement financing.
When you start researching home improvement financing you’ll quickly learn that there are different ways to borrow money for home improvements. The two general types of loans are often categorized as “secure” and “unsecure” loans.
Unsecure loans are loans which are given to you based on your credit rating. Your credit rating is really nothing more than a measure of your historical ability to pay off debts and money given to you in the past. If you’ve always paid your bills on time and always pay back debt then you probably have a pretty good credit rating. By financing your home improvement projects with an unsecure loan of some type you will be paying the loan off without any sort of collateral offered to the bank. A credit card, even a credit card from a home improvement store used to obtain a zero percent interest home improvement loan, is usually considered an unsecure loan.
Secure loans are loans in which the bank or lending institution have some sort of collateral or item which they technically “own” until you pay it off. When you buy a house with a mortgage the bank technically owns your home until you’ve paid off the mortgage amount. Your house is the collateral. If you default on your loan then the bank can take your house and sell it in an effort to regain some of the money they lent you.
When you’re exploring home improvement financing options you’re almost always going to end up with some sort of secured loan because most of the time the equity or “extra value” in your house is used as collateral for a loan to improve it.
Secured home improvement loans such as home equity loans and home equity lines of credit generally have a lower interest rate, which makes paying them off easier over the long run. Depending on your tax situation you may even be able to deduct the interest you pay on the secured home improvement loan from your yearly income tax returns.
No matter what type of home improvement financing you consider remember that you do have to pay the money back and you will be paying interest on the money owed. Plan ahead and make sure you can really afford the monthly payments before you go foward with your home improvement project. Many home improvement plans are scaled back when people finally begin to consider the true cost of home improvement financing.
If your home improvement project is a rather large one such as remodeling a kitchen, adding a bathroom or building an addition on your house then a secured loan that offers up your home’s equity as collateral is the best form of home improvement financing.
Tennessee’s population is exploding with more people moving into the state each year, raising home values and changing the financial housing map of the Volunteer State. Many residents of Tennessee have found themselves unable to move to new homes in the state because they can’t afford the rising mortgage costs brought on by the increased demand in housing and Tennessee real estate, so more and more Tennessee residents are improving their existing homes by taking out Tennessee home improvement loans and financing their home improvement costs.
When a Tennessee homeowner wants to improve his home but doesn’t have the money readily available he or she usually turns to a home improvement financing method of some sort, whether it be a home equity loan, a home equity line of credit, or even a zero interest home improvement loan. They could also turn to the First Tennessee bank for home improvement and home loans of various types. Tennessee has been at the forefront of setting up government issued loans and grants for home improvements like the “My Front Yard” forgivable home improvement loan program in Knoxville, TN.
Tennessee is the 18th largest economy in the nation, which means there are lots of people working on their homes and lots of industries and jobs available to keep those Tennessee home improvement loans being paid off. However, moving to a new home is often much more expensive than improving the one you already live in, so more and more Tennessee homeowners are fixing up their current home by adding custom built additions, remodeling kitchens and bathrooms and even attempting some of their own home improvement projects.
As the cost of home improvement projects rise, though, more Tennessee people are turning to home improvement financing and applying for Tennessee home improvement loans through various means. The methods of applying for a home improvement loan are basically the same if you live in East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee or even West Tennessee. While residents in the larger Tennessee cities like Knoxville, Nashville, Chattanooga, Memphis and Oak Ridge might have higher mortgages or higher property values, even the rural Tennessee state residents will have some home equity to use as collateral for home improvement financing options.
The bottom line is that homeowners living in Tennessee have a lot of different options when it comes to pay for improvements to their homes. Whether they’re hiring Tennessee contractors or looking to add on to their current home with the help of a Tennessee custom builder, they’re going to need a Tennessee home improvement loan to finance their home improvement project.
Most forms of home improvement financing consist of some sort of home loan which requires you to pay back the loan amount as well as a certain amount of interest. If your home improvement project needed $5,000 worth of financing you may have to pay it back over a year and would actually end up paying back $5,500 or more to the bank or home improvement lending institution.
That’s how a home improvement finance company makes money: it charges you interest!
However, there’s a way you can often get home improvement financing with no interest at for a limited time as long as your current credit rating is pretty good. The secret is to use a credit card offered by Lowe’s or The Home Depot or some other large hardware chain..
Large hardware stores want you to buy their products for your home improvement projects so they’re willing to offer you a break on home improvement financing that you might not otherwise get from a loan company or bank.
Many times they will offer you a line of credit with absolutely no interest charged for the first year that the loan is open. The key to this is that you pretty much have to buy everything at once and if you’re going to purchase any home improvement services then you’ll have to finance them through the hardware store’s credit card. This means you may not get the absolutely best deal on some contractor services but you may still save money with the no interest home improvement financing.
If you choose to finance your home improvement project this way then remember that you’ll still have to pay back the loan and you’ll only have a certain amount of time to do it before interest starts being charged. Sometimes the interest for home improvement financing through a store credit card can be high if you’re not careful.
Overall using a hardware store credit card to get a zero percent interest home improvement loan is a good way to finance your home improvement project as long as you have a plan to pay it off within the alloted time.
The one factor that usually prevents people from improving their home is money. Having the money to commit to a home improvement project, whether done by yourself or someone else, is almost always a factor in making your home more livable. But with a little creativity you can often come up with the money you need to finance that home improvement project so that your current house can become a dream home.
Here are four methods you can use to finance that home improvement project you just can’t live without.
 Home Equity Line of Credit - Sometimes called a HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) this is basically a loan from the bank where you use part of your home’s value as collateral. For example, if you owe your bank $100,000 on your mortgage, but your home is really worth $175,000 then you could conceivably get a line of credit from the bank for that $75,000 in equity or “extra value” your home has. You may or may not actually get a check from the bank. Sometimes you just get a “credit amount” to use for whatever you want. HELOC loans typically allow you to write checks or even use a check card to pay people, and the amount is automatically paid out of your value. So if you have your bathroom remodelled but you’re not sure what the total cost of the project will be, this might be a good option. Let’s say you spend $10,000 on your bathroom. You may still have $65,000 in “credit” which you can spend or not. Remember: you do have to pay it all back  There are lots of different rate and payback options available with Home Equity Lines of Credit.
Home Equity Loan - A home equity loan is similar to a Home Equity Line of Credit, but it’s usually for a fixed amount. In this case you may just get a straight check that you have to begin paying back on a regular schedule. These are usually better if you know exactly how much you need to spend and you don’t want to spend any more. You’ll want to talk to a banker about both the HELOC and Home Equity Loan to find out which is better for you. I like to go through the same company as my mortgage just to make things easier. You can sometimes save some filing and appraisal fees this way as well.
Home Store Financing Credit Cards Deals - You probably won’t find this at your local hardware store, but some of the large home improvement stores offer their own financing and sometimes you can get a pretty good deal depending upon the size of your project. Lowe’s offers three kinds of credit cards and the Home Depot has similar credit card options. They often run specials where you can get a year of free or no interest financing for your home improvement project provided you spend a certain amount of money. This option is good for those smaller projects where you don’t have the money readily available but spacing the payments over 12 months wouldn’t be all the painful. My wife and I bought several major appliances and replaced several exterior doors with a financing deal when we first moved into our new home. We needed the doors and the appliances immediately, but we didn’t want to spend all our money right away, so we got a zero interest plan for the first year. It was essentially just a credit card. We paid off the loan over the year in small increments and never paid a dime in interest.
Sell Left Over Materials from Your Home Improvement Project - This is a little unconventional and it’s doubtful that you’ll end up getting nearly enough money to pay for your entire home project, but it could bring in a few bucks. If you’re doing any sort of renovation or removing any older materials from your home remember that though you may not want the items, they could still have value. This means that you may want to reconsider knocking out those 20 year old kitchen cabinets with a sledgehammer if you know someone who is looking for cabinet just like the ones you’re trying to replace. I’ve seen people sell old cabinets, wood from floors, old landscaping stones, ripped out bushed and trees and even old roofing shingles. Not only are you making some extra money to pay for your project, but you’re also recycling products and putting a little less trash in the local landfill!
Sell That Junk in your Basement, Attic and Closets - This is another method for financing a home improvement project that most people don’t initially think about. This is obviously dependent on the size of your home improvement project and the value of your junk! There was actually a short-lived HGTV show which featured an antique appraiser who came into people’s homes, appraised their “junk” and then they took the items to auction in hopes of raising enough money to pay for a home renovation or improvement project. There are lots of places to sell your items, from eBay to local flea markets to having a yard sale on your lawn. We moved three years ago and my wife and I are still going through old boxes and putting up items for sale. We’ve made several thousand dollars over the last couple years and we didn’t have any valuable antiques or pieces of furniture. We’re just slowly selling things for $10 - $20 at a time that we’ve accumulated over the years!
As always, don’t get caught up in the project and lose track of what you can and cannot afford. Just because you’ve always wanted a gold plated bathtub with floor to ceiling marble walls doesn’t necessarily mean you can afford it. Budgets matter and if you aren’t careful you can easily spend yourself right out of that dream home before you have a chance to enjoy it. Be smart and if you have home improvement financing questions you should really talk with a banker or financial consultant.
We’ll cover more of these topics in details. Check out some of the resources listed at this site for more information about how you can finance your home improvement project.
More helpful articles about home improvement loans: State and City Home Improvement Loans
How You Can Afford A Home Improvement When You Have No Equity
Tennessee Home Improvement Loans on the Risk
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Intro Purchase APR
0% until November 2011 | Intro Balance Trans. APR
None | APR
14.9% Variable | Annual Fee
None |
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| Capital One® VentureOneSM Rewards Credit Card |
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- 1.25 miles per dollar on every purchase, every day
- Redeem miles for airline tickets, hotel rooms, car rentals and more
- No limit on the miles you can earn and miles won't expire
- Fly free on any airline, any time with no blackout dates
- Use rewards for travel, merchandise, gift cards and more
- 0% intro APR on purchases until November 2011
- No foreign transaction fees
- No annual fee
- To apply online click the "Apply Now" button or call 1-866-582-0808
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Intro Purchase APR
0% until November 2011 | Intro Balance Trans. APR
None | APR
13.9% Variable | Annual Fee
None |
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| Discover® More Card |
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- 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 18 full months, then the Regular APR
- 0% intro APR on Purchases for 6 full months, then the Regular APR
- This holiday season get 5% Cashback Bonus in restaurants, department stores and clothing store purchases.
- Up to 1% unlimited Cashback Bonus on all other purchases
- Get double Cashback Bonus on up to $1000 in holiday purchases on any online shopping through December 31st.
- No Annual Fee
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Intro Purchase APR
0%* for 6 months* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
0%* for 18 full months* | APR
13.99% - 20.99%
(Variable)* | Annual Fee
None* |
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| Discover® More Card - Black |
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- 0% intro APR on Purchases and Balance Transfers for full 12 months, then the Regular APR
- This holiday season get 5% Cashback Bonus in restaurants, department stores and clothing store purchases
- Get double Cashback Bonus on up to $1000 in holiday purchases on any online shopping through December 31st.
- Up to 1% unlimited Cashback Bonus on all other purchases
- No Annual Fee
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Intro Purchase APR
0%* for 12 full months* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
0%* for 12 full months* | APR
12.99% - 20.99%
(Variable)* | Annual Fee
None* |
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| Citi® Diamond Preferred® Rewards Card |
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- $50 gift card - Redeem 6,000 bonus points after $300 in purchases within 3 months of account opening
- 0% Intro APR on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 12 months. After that, the APR will be 12.99%-20.99% based on creditworthiness*. This APR will vary with the market based on the Prime Rate.
- 5 ThankYou® Points for every $1 spent on purchases at supermarkets, drugstores and gas stations for 12 months, 1 ThankYou Point thereafter**
- Redeem ThankYou Points for merchandise, travel rewards, gift cards, cash and more
- No annual fee*"
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Intro Purchase APR
0% for 12 months* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
0% for 12 months* | APR
12.99% - 20.99% (V) | Annual Fee
None |
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| Chase SapphireSM |
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- Earn $100 in rewards - that's 10,000 bonus points after your first purchase!
- Redeem points for travel, gift cards, merchandise, cash back and more
- 2X points earned on airfare booked through Ultimate Rewards & 1 point for every dollar spent on all other purchases
- Points never expire and there are no limits on how many points you can earn
- 24/7 Dedicated service advisors (No voice recording)
- Premier travel and purchase protection benefits
- All of this for no annual fee!
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Intro Purchase APR
None | Intro Balance Trans. APR
None | APR
12.24% Variable* | Annual Fee
None |
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Dining and Entertainment Credit Cards
 | | Dining and entertainment credit cards are for those who would like to earn rewards for every dollar they spend on dining and entertainment purchases. Earn reward points while doing the things you enjoy most. In addition many of these cards also offer reward points which can be used for hotel and travel rewards.
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| Discover® More Card - $100 Cashback Bonus |
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- Earn $100 Cashback Bonus when you make $500 in purchases in your first three months
- 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 12 full months, then the Regular APR
- 0% intro APR on Purchases for 6 full months, then the Regular APR
- This holiday season get 5% Cashback Bonus in restaurants, department stores and clothing store purchases.
- Up to 1% unlimited Cashback Bonus on all other purchases
- Get double Cashback Bonus on up to $1000 in holiday purchases on any online shopping through December 31st.
- No Annual Fee
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Intro Purchase APR
0%* for 6 months* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
0%* for 12 full months* | APR
11.99% - 20.99% (V)* | Annual Fee
None* |
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| The Platinum Card® from American Express |
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- Earn 25,000 Membership Rewards® bonus points when you spend $1,000 in your first 3 months of Card membership redeemable for one domestic round-trip Coach-Class airline ticket!
- Airport Club Access: Access airport lounges around the world, compliments of Airport Club Access Program.
- 24-Hour Concierge Service: From buying gifts to making reservations, the Platinum Card® Concierge is at your service so you can spend your energy doing what you want.
- FINE HOTELS & RESORTS: Receive special amenities and comforts when staying at more than 600 boutique, resort and luxury hotels around the world.
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Intro Purchase APR
N/A | Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A | APR
N/A | Annual Fee
$450 |
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| Discover® More Card |
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- 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 18 full months, then the Regular APR
- 0% intro APR on Purchases for 6 full months, then the Regular APR
- This holiday season get 5% Cashback Bonus in restaurants, department stores and clothing store purchases.
- Up to 1% unlimited Cashback Bonus on all other purchases
- Get double Cashback Bonus on up to $1000 in holiday purchases on any online shopping through December 31st.
- No Annual Fee
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Intro Purchase APR
0%* for 6 months* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
0%* for 18 full months* | APR
13.99% - 20.99%
(Variable)* | Annual Fee
None* |
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| American Express® Gold Card |
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- Earn 10,000 Membership Rewards® bonus points when you spend $500 in your first 3 months of Card membership - redeemable for select gift cards valued at $100!
- The Membership Rewards program - Turn your everyday purchases into Membership Rewards points, and then redeem them for an amazing collection of travel, shopping, dining and entertainment rewards.
- Gold Card Events - exclusive access to tickets for select concerts, shows, major sporting events, and more in cities nationwide.
- Express Approval. Get a decision in 60 seconds.
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Intro Purchase APR
N/A | Intro Balance Trans. APR
N/A | APR
N/A | Annual Fee
$125 |
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| Miles by Discover® Card |
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- 12,000 Bonus Miles - Earn 1,000 Miles each month you make a purchase for your 1st year
- 1 Mile per $1 on every purchase
- Plus, 2 Miles on travel and restaurant purchases on your first $3,000 each year
- No limit on the Miles you earn and Miles don't expire*
- Fly on any airline, book any hotel or car, with no blackout dates
- 0%* intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 6 months, then the regular APR
- No Annual Fee, No Overlimit Fee, No Redemption Fee
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Intro Purchase APR
0%* for 6 months* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
0%* for 6 months* | APR
10.99% (Variable)* | Annual Fee
None* |
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| TrueEarnings® Card from Costco and American Express |
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- No annual fee for Costco members
- 0% intro APR on purchases for six months
- Earn cash back wherever you buy, including 3% for gasoline for annual gasoline purchases of up to $3,000 (1% thereafter), 3% for restaurants, 2% for travel, and 1% virtually everywhere else
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Intro Purchase APR
See Terms* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
See Terms* | APR as low as
15.24% variable | Annual Fee
See Terms* |
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| Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express |
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- Earn up to 25,000 Starpoints® - enough for two free nights at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco the W Boston or any other category 5 hotel.
- Redeem Starpoints® for free nights at over 1,000 hotels and resorts in nearly 100 countries and for free flights on over 350 airlines - all with no blackout dates.
- No annual fee for the first year and $65 thereafter.
- Stay 2 nights and get the 3rd night free at participating Sheraton® Hotels and Resorts worldwide.
- Earn 4 to 5 Starpoints for every dollar you spend at Starwood Preferred Guest Hotels and Resorts.
- Smarter Travel Editor's Choice Award for Best Travel Awards Card for Domestic Use.
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Intro Purchase APR
See Terms* | Intro Balance Trans. APR
See Terms* | APR
15.24% variable | Annual Fee
See Terms* |
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| PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express® Card |
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- Enjoy 5x Points on Airfare
- Enjoy 3x Points on Dining and Hotels
- And our gift to you ... 2x Points on Everything Else
- Plus, receive 20,000 bonus points when you spend at least $650 in the first 3 months - that could be enough for a free airline ticket
- Use the points you earn to redeem for one of many other travel and retail items within the PenFed Premium Rewards program
- You must be a Pentagon Federal Credit Union member to apply. Not a member? It’s easy to join. Click here to learn more.
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Intro Purchase APR
None | Intro Balance Trans. APR
4.99%-6.99%* for 24 mo. | APR as low as
13.24% | Annual Fee
$50 |
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| Chase Sapphire Preferred Card |
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- Start with a Free Flight - Earn 25,000 bonus points after you spend 3,000 in the first 3 months- that's enough for a free flight - or use your points toward just about anything else!
- Points are worth 25% more when you book airfare online through Ultimate RewardsSM
- No travel restrictions or blackout dates when you book airfare or hotel through Ultimate RewardsSM
- Earn a 7% annual points dividend - even on points already redeemed
- Redeem your points at leading airlines and hotels at a 1:1 value
- 2X points earned on airfare & hotel accommodations booked through Ultimate Rewards and 1 point for every dollar spent on all other purchases
- When you call us, our phones are answered by people, not prompts
- No Annual Fee for your first year - An $85 value
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