How to Calculate Your Hard Money Loan Amount

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What does your lender take into consideration to calculate your hard money loan? Here’s what you need to know.

How much could you get in a hard money loan?

At least 50% of your success as a real estate investor will come from using and understanding leverage well. Simply knowing your numbers gets you ahead of the curve.

You need to be able to figure out a ballpark number of what a lender will give you for your property. Let’s go over how to calculate your hard money loan, what costs you’ll need to know about, and run through some examples.

Calculate a Hard Money Loan: Maximum LTV

There are two main calculations for a hard money loan.

The first is: What is the maximum loan value a lender will offer?

Every hard money lender has a maximum loan ability. This maximum is based on the property’s after-repair value or ARV.

ARV is what the property will be worth at the appraisal when you sell or refinance. This is the number the property could go for on the open market after you’ve done all your renovations.

LTV vs ARV

Traditional lenders use “loan-to-value,” which means they base their loans on the cost of the property. 

But hard money is designed for real estate investing, so they lend with the assumption that your property is value-add. It’s a property that needs work, and when you put in the work, the home will be worth more in the future.

The after-repair value is what hard money lenders base their loan on. Most lenders will lend somewhere between 70-75% of the ARV. However, the actual loan-to-ARV percentage you get depends on factors like experience, credit, etc.

Most hard money lenders will only approve a loan for an amount you can actually afford. These lenders want two things:

  1. To get their money back.
  2. For you to make money.

75% ARV is the average amount they can lend safely. This amount estimates that you’ll be able to both pay all your costs and still make a little profit for yourself.

Max LTV for Hard Money Example

Let’s look at an example. We’ll keep it as simple as possible and say our ARV is $100,000. This loan amount is likely unrealistic depending on your market, but this calculation works the same with any number.

If $100,000 is our ARV, that means it’s the absolute maximum any hard money lender could loan you. In rare situations, a hard money lender may loan you up to 100% of your ARV.

More common, however, is that you get 75% of your ARV. To figure out this number, you just multiply your ARV by .75:

ARV  ×  % of ARV  =  Loan Amount

$100,000  ×  .75  =  $75,000

$75,000 is the realistic maximum loan you can expect from a hard money lender for a property with an ARV of $100k.

Calculating the loan-to-ARV for a hard money loan is only the first calculation, though…

Calculate a Hard Money Loan: Maximum Actual Loan 

If the first question is what is the maximum loan amount you can get, then the second question is: What’s the actual amount they’ll lend?

You might hear a hard money lender say they’ll lend up to “80/100” or “90/100” – let’s go over what that means.

How to Figure Out Actual Loan

You’ll notice there are two numbers with a slash in between.

The first number is the loan-to-cost (not ARV). For example, if it’s 90/100, that means they’ll lend up to 90% of what you bought the property for. 

The second number is the rehab cost. In the 90/100 example, the lender would give you 100% of the costs needed to fix up the property.

So in this case, they’ll offer you a loan that covers up to 90% of the purchase price and 100% of the rehab costs.

But remember: there’s still the overall maximum loan of $75,000 that we can’t go over.

Calculate Your Costs for a Hard Money Loan

So say a lender tells you they can loan 90/100 and 75% of the ARV, and your ARV is $100,000. That means they’ll give you 90% of the purchase cost + all the construction costs, but that total number can’t be more than $75,000.

Let’s break this down with some simple examples.

Don’t Forget Closing Costs

We’ll say we’re buying a property for $60,000, and it will take $20,000 to fix up.

There’s one more number many real estate investors fail to include here: closing costs. This number includes:

  • What you pay the title company, escrow attorney, or whoever performs the closing.
  • Lender origination fees.
  • Title costs.
  • Insurance.
  • Anything else that goes into the closing of a transaction.

Your closing costs will be dependent on your purchase price. For our $60k property, closing costs will be somewhere between $1,800 and $3,000. We’ll go with $3,000 for our example.

90/100 Hard Money Loan Example

Here are the numbers broken down for our current example. How do they work out for a 90/100 loan?

Purchase Price:  $60k

Rehab Costs:  $20k

Closing Costs:  $3k

Total:  $83k

Now, if the lender offers 90% of the purchase price, they’d cover $54,000 on this property. That leaves $6,000 (aka, 10%) you’ll have to cover.

They’ll also pay for 100% of the $20,000 construction costs. So as long as you stay in-budget, there will be no out-of-pocket costs there.

A hard money loan covers no closing costs. You’ll need to fund all $3,000 there.

Here’s what we’re left with:

Loan Covers:  $74,000

You Cover:  $9,000

Now you know going in that you’d need $9,000 to make this deal work. 

You can also see that the $74,000 is less than the max LTV of 75% (or $75,000 on this case). But what if our rehab costs were actual going to be $25,000 instead of $20k?

This would push our loan coverage up to $79k. The loan would still only cover $75k, so you’d be stuck with an extra $4,000, totaling your out-of-pocket cost for this property to $13,000.

80/90 Example

To really drive this home, let’s go through the exact same example but with an 80/90 loan.

If the purchase price is still $60k, they’ll give you 80%, so:

$60,000  ×  .80  =  $48,000

Rehab costs are still at $20k, so now the loan would cover:

$20,000  ×  .90  =  $18,000

The total loan amount would be:

$48k  +  $18k  =  $66,000

Your total costs would be:

Purchase:  $12,000

Rehab:  $2,000

Closing:  $3,000

Total: $17,000

For a 80/90 loan, you’ll need to bring in $8,000 more than you would a 90/100 loan.

Other Factors in Calculating a Hard Money Loan

This is a very basic way to calculate your hard money loan. Keep in mind these numbers will shift a bit depending on your qualifications, experience, and credit score.

But even a ballpark number keeps you prepared. And the better prepared you are money-wise, the better terms you can get.

Additional Costs on Your Property

The costs of real estate investing can add up. This is why it’s important to know before closing on a loan – or even before approaching a lender – what you can truly afford.

One more cost that’s easy to lose sight of in the midst of leverage is the carry costs once you actually own the property.

You’ll be paying interest and principal every month, plus the accumulation of taxes, insurance, and potentially HOA costs. These are all amounts that will be coming either out of your pocket or from gap funding sources. 

More Info on Calculating Hard Money Loans

We hope this helps you as you navigate your real estate investment career. Our purpose is to make sure you use hard money correctly, knowledgably, and in the right positions.

Be sure to check out our YouTube channel for more real estate investing breakdowns.

If you have any questions, or a deal you’d like us to run the numbers on, we’d be happy to help. Email us at Info@HardMoneyMike.com.

Happy Investing.

Make a House a Home

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It’s not easy for everyone to make a house a home. It takes time, money, and a whole lot of love. This house in Oklahoma was flipped by one of our long-time regulars, Eric. He has always done excellent work, and a lot of it has to do with his passion for making houses into beautiful homes that people can’t wait to move into.

He purchased this home for $137,000 with a loan for $184,000. Setting his budget at $43,000, he got right to work. To him, part of making this house a home was to strip all of the wood paneling down and create a more modern and serene affect to the house.

Take the living room for example. Not only did it have old, wood linoleum floors but also plain, white walls. How about we get some real hard wood on the floors, paint the walls with a more comfortable and warmer white, and add a nice accent wall. This completely changes the feel to the room and can really inspire someone to do something creative with the space.

Additionally, with the kitchen, he started with removing the breakfast bar. This really opens up the space into the dining area and pulls the home into the modern era. He also brightened up the space with sleek, white cabinets, white speckled granite countertops, and polished stainless-steel appliances.

With all of this energy and love put into this house, he managed to turn it into a home in just 5 months! Altogether, he sold the home for $235,000 and pulled off an excellent profit. But to him, the real profit was renovating and remodeling this house into a wonderful home for a new family. When he sold this home, he told us that a home is a place that gives you mental and emotional support, a place you look forward to being in to get away from the outside world. Do you feel that way about your home? We really hope you do.

Do You Need a Hard Money Loan?

With hard money loans, it’s very important to shop around. Every hard money lender will offer a slightly different type of loan, with slightly different requirements.

There is a loan that is perfect for your credit, your plan, and your property. You just have to find it.


Contact us for a Hard Money Loan

Check us out on YouTube

Hard Money Mike funds loans in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas.

How to Refinance a Rental Property Into a DSCR Loan

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100% leverage for BRRRRs will be back on the table soon. Here’s how to refinance a rental property into a DSCR loan.

“Can I use a DSCR loan for a BRRRR?”

Yes!

A DSCR loan is one of the many products you can use to refinance your BRRRR rental property. 

Using the BRRRR method, you could buy a house with a hard money loan, fix it up, then refinance with the DSCR.

Let’s go through an example of what it would look like to refinance a rental property into a DSCR loan.

What Is a BRRRR and a DSCR Loan?

To get started, let’s review what these two real estate investment terms are.

What Is a DSCR Loan?

A DSCR loan (which stands for debt coverage service ratio) is a long-term rental loan with minimal qualification requirements. Your ability to get a DSCR loan is based on the property’s debt ratio, not your income, history, or experience. As long as the rent from the property covers all its expenses (mortgage, taxes, insurance, and HOA fees), you can qualify for a DSCR loan.

DSCR loans rely on cash flow. There are some DSCR products out there designed for negative cash flow properties. But these loans have higher interest rates, lower loan-to-values, and more cash out-of-pocket.

What Is a BRRRR?

BRRRR stands for Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. It’s a time-tested real estate strategy for acquiring cash-flowing rental properties.

In BRRRR, there are two loans involved:

  • The buy loan. The loan you use to close the house, do the rehab, and handle carry costs until you get a tenant. Real estate investors often use hard money for this, since it’s a short-term loan.
  • The refinance loan. The loan that gets you out of the hard money and captures the equity you put in the house with your repairs.

A DSCR loan can be a perfect fit for many BRRRRs’ second, long-term, refinance loan.

Appraised Value vs Purchase Price for a BRRRR’s DSCR Refinance

DSCR loans come in many different products (interest-only, 30-year fixed, etc.). You can use any type of DSCR loan as a refinance for a BRRRR.

There is just one question you need to ask your lender: For the LTV on a DSCR refi, do you need to use the appraised value or the purchase price?

When you do a rate-and-term refinance with a conventional loan, the guidelines often allow you to use the appraised value. For DSCR loans, however, lenders write their own guidelines. The number used for the LTV varies from lender-to-lender, so it’s always important to ask.

A Fast Refi

You don’t want to be stuck in the hard money loan for very long at all. The ideal BRRRR reaches the refinance stage within 90 days. The interest rate on hard money adds up quickly. It’s important to figure out all the details of your refinance ahead of time so you can get through the process fast.

We’ve been doing BRRRR long before it was named that. Back in the day, we called it “Quick to Buy, Quick to Refi.” The old name emphasizes a part of the process that many current BRRRR investors miss.

To be quick to refi:

  • Make sure you’re pre-qualified for the refinance loan, before you even close on the property.
  • Understand when you can use the appraised value of the house. This will tell you how much money you’d have to bring into the refinance.
  • Plan out whether you can get this BRRRR done with 100% leverage. 

Refinance a Rental Property into a DSCR Loan with 100% Leverage

100% leverage means you don’t put any of your own money in – not for purchase, closing, rehab, or even carry costs. In 2010, we helped many clients do BRRRRs with zero money out-of-pocket. Those opportunities will be available again soon.

For a successful 100% leverage BRRRR, the property you buy has to be at least 25% undermarket. In a down market (like the one quickly approaching us now), you can find many properties for 25-40% below market value.

Example of a 100% Leverage BRRRR

What numbers do you need in order to figure out a zero down option for BRRRR? Let’s go over a couple examples.

The 75% Rule

As we’ve covered, the short-term hard money loan comes first, and the long-term refinance loan comes second. But you have to know what LTV you’re qualified for before you close on the loan.

For most cases with a rate-and-term refinance, you can qualify for an LTV of 75% of the current appraised value.

To get 100% leverage for your BRRRR, all of your costs have to stay under 75% of the after-repair value.. For example, if you had a property with a projected ARV of $400,000, a 75% LTV would leave you with a $300,000 loan (aka, 75% of $400k).

Now, the difference between the ARV and the LTV is the amount you get to budget for all your costs (purchase, closing, carry, and construction). In this case, that would be $100,000. Any costs above $100,000 end up coming out of your pocket.

Budget for Costs

Let’s continue with our previous example.

Let’s say the purchase price for this home was $250,000.

We’ve looked over the property, and we could do the full rehab for $35,000. Also, closing and carry costs will be at $15,000.

So, what does all this mean? If you can get a hard money loan for $300,000, then your whole project is covered. You can refinance the whole amount into a long-term DSCR loan and pay off the hard money, with nothing out-of-pocket for you.

Going Over-Budget

No money down is the ideal for BRRRR. There will be more opportunities upcoming for zero down properties.

But for the sake of example, let’s say your costs on a property can’t stay under 75% of the ARV. If the purchase and carry costs are the same, but the rehab will actually cost $65,000, that brings our all-in costs up to $330,000.

Yet even the best hard money lenders probably won’t be able to give you more than $300,000 for this property. That extra $30k comes out of your pocket.

This is why you need to know your BRRRR numbers ahead of time before buying a property. Too many people jump into a hard money loan, but can’t qualify for the amount they’ll need.

Help with Refinancing a BRRRR Into a DSCR Loan

Are you in a position to qualify for a 75% loan? Do you know what numbers your deal needs in order to get a good refinance? Have you found a property that could be a 100% leverage BRRRR?

If you need help answering these questions, send us an email at Info@HardMoneyMike.com. Let’s run the numbers on a hard money loan. We’d love to see you refinance your BRRRR into a DSCR loan.

Happy Investing.

Home on the Prairie

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This ambitious fix and flipper turned this run-down home into a true home on the prairie. One of our expert flippers down in Pueblo, CO saw this home on Prairie Street and put in an offer right away. It wasn’t completely lost, and it had major potential. He purchased the 1,077 square foot home for $145,000 and had a $30,000 budget. His scope of work included updating the exterior siding, refinishing the kitchen and bathrooms, and repairing the plumbing and electrical. No easy feat!

Prairie Street is in an older neighborhood, but a lot of the homes have been updated. He wanted to make sure the charm of the home remained, while still giving the home a new and modern appeal. It all started with the kitchen. He fixed the plumbing and electrical, and then proceeded to install new cabinets, floors, and appliances. The kitchen is one of the centerpieces of the home, and he knew he had to make this room stand out. He went with a sleek look of a white subway tile backsplash, pure white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, and a grey-tones granite countertop. This design really gives off a clean and modern look, while still leaving room for the homeowner’s design choices to add some fun color.

Next, he did the same with the bathrooms by getting them fully renovated with a new and sleek look. As a result, it’s really stunning when you look at the before photo compared to the after!

Lastly, he made sure not to forget the exterior, and he cleaned up the siding and added a fresh coat of paint. Curb appeal is not something to forget, and he really brought this prairie home back to life.

He did all of this amazing work in just 4 months and was able to sell the home for $257,000! Talk about a comeback for this cute Home on the Prairie!

Do You Need a Hard Money Loan?

With hard money loans, it’s very important to shop around. Every hard money lender will offer a slightly different type of loan, with slightly different requirements.

There is a loan that is perfect for your credit, your plan, and your property. You just have to find it.


Contact us for a Hard Money Loan

Check us out on YouTube

Hard Money Mike funds loans in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Wild, Wild Flip

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When you think of Grand Junction, Colorado, do you think of a wild, wild flip? More likely, you think of the beautiful, wild wild west. The arts, the culture, and the rustic yet charming lifestyles. That’s precisely why Ted has set down roots here in Grand Junction and has a roaring fix and flip business. He’s one of the best in town, and he turns rundown homes into jaw-dropping beauties.

Let’s take a look at this 1,720 square foot home on Indian Creek Road. It was built in the late 70’s and looks like it hasn’t been updated since. Ted saw this 3 bed/2 bath home for what it’s potential was and got right to work. He purchased this home for $262,000 and set his budget to be $30,000.

Fortunately, the structural integrity of the home was not bad. So, Ted put all of his focus on remodeling the home by bringing it back to life by way of new floors, new paint, and a new layout. You can see the living room here. It looks drab and dull, with not much life. This room needed some brightness. He put hardwood floors in, painted the room white, smoothed out the ceiling and added pocket lights for a more modern appeal. And the best part, he replaced the windows, took down those old curtains, and let the sunshine do the rest.

Additionally, the kitchen needs a facelift, but only in its design. The floors and appliances needed replacing, and the cabinets needed fresh paint. It’s not much work but look what a difference it makes!

After only 3 months, Ted ending up selling this home for $385,000! This is just another example of how fix and flippers are changing our world for the better. They’re turning these rundown homes into beautiful SFHs that people can be proud to live in. Grand Junction will always be the wild, wild west, even with this wonderful wild, wild flip.

Do You Need a Hard Money Loan?

With hard money loans, it’s very important to shop around. Every hard money lender will offer a slightly different type of loan, with slightly different requirements.

There is a loan that is perfect for your credit, your plan, and your property. You just have to find it.


Contact us for a Hard Money Loan

Check us out on YouTube

Hard Money Mike funds loans in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Fix and Flipped Into the 21st Century

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Take a minute and imagine a 19th century home. Are you picturing an old, dark, creaking, small house? Well, this 2,545 square foot home in Colorado Springs just got fix and flipped into the 21st century. Christian saw this old home and saw nothing but potential. He purchased it for $347,500 with a loan for $397,500. With a $50,000 budget, he had a lot of work ahead of him!

 

Not only was the house full of 50+ year old plumbing and electrical, but the design aspects needed some serious updates. The flooring throughout the entire home needed to be replaced. The kitchen needed to be rearranged for a more open floor plan. The exterior of the home needed new paint, a new porch, and new siding. And overall, the home needed to be modernized and brightened up.

Look at this vanity choice for the master bath that Christian chose. It has a modern feel, yet it holds old-worldly charm. An excellent choice for potential buyers who want the home to still have a touch of 19th century grace.

Check out how he opened up this kitchen by lining up everything on the one side, and he brightened up the entire room with white cabinets and countertops. He had to install a smaller window to accommodate the new floor plan, but it was well worth it.

In just 6 months, Christian was able to completely renovate and revitalize this home and ended up selling it for $565,000. Overall, Christian flipped this 19th century home into a beautiful, appealing 21st century home while still holding onto the elegance and finesse that this home most assuredly had when it was first built.

 

Do You Need a Hard Money Loan?

With hard money loans, it’s very important to shop around. Every hard money lender will offer a slightly different type of loan, with slightly different requirements.

There is a loan that is perfect for your credit, your plan, and your property. You just have to find it.


Contact us for a Hard Money Loan

Check us out on YouTube

Hard Money Mike funds loans in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas.

When NOT To Use Hard Money For Real Estate Investing

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Every form of leverage has its time and place. Here’s when not to use hard money.

You need all kinds of leverage as a real estate investor. Different investment problems will call for different kinds of debt solutions.

Hard money, banks, private equity, and OPM all have their time and place. However, there are times when certain lending methods just aren’t smart.

Hard money has a lot of important uses, but when should you not use hard money?

1. When It Costs More

The main time when not to use hard money is whenever it’s the more expensive option.

You get into real estate to make money. Saving money on the leverage for a deal is a top priority.

Hard money is one of the most expensive forms of leverage. If using hard money costs you more than any other lending option, that’s your first sign not to use hard money.

When Is Hard Money More Expensive?

Private equity funds and hard money lenders typically have around the same pricing. The real gap comes when you compare bank loans to hard money.

In a previous article about when you should use hard money, we went over an ideal situation for hard money. In this example, the speed of a hard money loan can get you such a good deal on a property that you wind up saving money.

However, that doesn’t always happen. The cost of the property might not change whether you have a hard money loan or bank loan. You might have plenty of time to wait for the cheaper but slower loan from the bank. In those cases, you almost always should not use hard money.

The interest rate and origination fee for hard money will almost always make it the more expensive loan. Here’s a side-by-side comparison of a hard money loan vs bank loan for the same property.

As you can see, when all else is equal, a hard money loan would cost you over $9,000 more.

Always, always go with the cheapest source of funds. In typical situations, bank loans and OPM will be cheaper than hard money or private equity.

2. When You Have Time

If speed isn’t a factor in getting a good deal, that’s a sign when not to use hard money.

Sometimes, speed at closing can mean the difference between getting a property and not getting it. Or, closing fastest could mean saving tens of thousands of dollars on a deal. Hard money is a good option then.

However, that’s not always the case. Sometimes a seller is willing to wait several weeks for a bank loan to clear in order to take a higher bid.

If time isn’t a consideration, then you probably shouldn’t use hard money.

3. When You Have Real OPM

OPM is money you get from real people you know. If OPM is available to you, you should always use it instead of hard money.

This form of leverage combines the speed and flexibility of a hard money lender with the price (or cheaper) of a bank loan.

If you can source and secure an OPM loan for a project, then there’s usually no reason to get hard money.

4. When You Already Have Money

It’s never smart to use a hard money loan when you already have cheaper funds available – especially when you have cash.

There’s no reason to pay a 9% interest rate when you could pay with a 0% rate, or use a cheaper line of credit like a HELOC.

A time when not to use hard money is when you have an equally flexible funding source that costs way less. In general, when you have cash available, stay away from leverage at all.

How Else Do I Know When Not to Use Hard Money?

What’s the right leverage for you? Are you doing it right? Are you using the best funds for your project?

Join our weekly call-in here, every Thursday at 1:15 PM to 2:15 PM MST to find out! Bring a specific question about a deal, and we can talk through the best option for you.

Happy Investing.

Fix and Flip in Pueblo

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It is so inspiring to see a successful flip, especially when the house is run-down and in dire need of some upgrades. When you can look at the before and after photos and truly be in awe at what has been accomplished, it sure does feel good!

A Fix-and-Flip in Pueblo

When Dave and Justin saw this home in Pueblo, Colorado, they didn’t see a weathered, broken home. They saw a fantastic opportunity, especially with a low purchase price of $92,720.

It’s a small home, only 955 square feet, 2 beds and 1 bath. The previous owners had the house packed full of stuff, with hardly any living space. But once it was cleared out, these guys had their work cut out for them. The bathroom needed a full remodel, the kitchen needed a facelift, the bedrooms and living space needed new carpet and paint, and the exterior needed a new roof, shutters, and paint.

That sounds like quite the scope of work, but with limited labor cost (Dave and Justin doing the work themselves), they set their budget at$10,000 and got to work.

They completely gutted the bathroom and finished it off nicely with a black and white theme and a laminate wood floor. The vast improvements in the kitchen included nice stainless-steel appliances, wood floors, black granite countertops, and crisp white cabinets. The exterior of the home was perhaps the biggest improvement of the whole project. With freshly painted siding and shutters, a new sleek roof, and an eye-grabbing new design for the front yard landscaping, these guys really made the home look as charming as ever.

Incorporating neutral colors and clean lines into a renovation can have broad appeal and attract a wide range of buyers. The design decisions these flippers made paid off in the $180,000 sale of this Pueblo property.

 

What To Do When Your Flip Is Stuck on the Market

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It’s all too common in times like these – your flip is stuck on the market. Here are your options to save your money.

You got a great deal on a property a couple months ago. You worked hard to fix up the house fast. And now… it’s not selling.

This problem is happening to investors daily. We’re getting a lot of calls from our clients (and other people’s clients!) asking for help.

So, what do you do with a sticky flip?

Your Options When Your Flip Is Stuck on the Market

Obviously, the ideal goal with a flip is to sell at a profit, quickly. That may not be possible under current conditions. If your flip is stuck on the market, you might need to strategize a different exit plan.

Your main options are to:

  1. Keep dropping the price until it sells. Cut your losses and just get rid of the property.
  2. Refinance your flip’s loan. Make your lender happy, but keep the house on the market to try to salvage some profit.
  3. Convert the flip into a rental. Refinance your flip, then hold onto the property for a couple more years, until a good market returns. You can keep a tenant and get some rent income in the meantime.

Which option is right for you? That depends on your goals, willingness to rent, and financial situation. Let’s go over some of these options in detail to help you decide.

First Step in Converting a Flip to a Rental

First of all, if you decide you’d rather turn the flip into a rental, stop lowering the market price immediately.

You can’t drag out this decision, lowering the price “just in case” while exploring rental options.

When you refinance your fix-and-flip, the appraiser looks at the market history. They see the last price the house was listed for. They have to base their appraisal off that number, regardless of whether the house sold or not.

If the last listed price is lower than what they would have appraised the house for… they still have to go with the listed number.

So every time you drop the price, it lowers your potential appraisal. This directly hurts your loan-to-value on a refinance.

Loan Options for Your Flip Stuck on the Market

Once you’ve made the (quick) decision to refinance the property, what are your options?

Typically, you’d go to a bank to get a conforming or traditional loan. But banks are slow, and this refinance needs to happen quickly. Also, with money tightening, bank loans are harder to get than ever.

Here are 3 other options we’d steer you toward:

1. DSCR Loans

The DSCR loan is the easiest, fastest way to get a longer-term rental loan. The core requirements for most DSCR loans are:

  • A good credit score – 680 minimum, with a higher score meaning the better the rates and terms.
  • Rent income – If your rent covers your monthly payments on the loan transaction, you’ll qualify. Some DSCR products will still take you if you lose up to 25% on the loan payment with rent.

If you decide you want to turn your flip into a rental, a DSCR loan should be the first option you consider.

Beware the Prepayment Penalty

All DSCR loans have a prepayment penalty. The standard timeframe is 3 or 5 years. The longer the term for your prepayment penalty, the better the rate.

Prepay penalties are like exit fees. For example, if your term is 5 years, and you decide to pay off the loan during year 3, they’ll charge you 3% of the loan as an exit fee.

2. Bridge Loans

If your flip is stuck on the market, but you want a short-term refinance, then bridge loans could be the better option.

Bridge loans typically last about 1 to 2 years. There are a couple directions you could go with a loan like this:

  • You can keep the house on the market and just use the bridge loan to get out of your original flip loan.
  • You can convert it to a short-term rental (think Airbnb) to bring in some cash flow.
  • You can turn it into a traditional rental while you wait out the market.

Bridge loans are good because they’re fast, interest-only, and have no prepay penalty. The downside of bridge loans is that they’re limited to 70% of the value of the home. Plus, they tend to have higher interest rates.

If your flip is stuck on the market for too long, your original lender will start asking for their money back – potentially raising rates or threatening foreclosure. A bridge loan is a great exit.

DSCR vs Bridge Loan to Refinance Out of a Fix-and-Flip

When deciding whether to go with a DSCR loan or bridge loan, you should consider the “tipping point.” Bridge loans have 2% – 4% higher annual rates. DSCR loans have a prepayment penalty.

Depending on how long you want to keep the loan on the house decides which type of loan will be cheaper for you. This tipping point usually lies somewhere between the 14th and 17th month of a DSCR loan. That’s when the pre-pay fee becomes cheaper than the rates on the bridge loan.

3. Real OPM

Lastly, real OPM is always the ideal funding source to get you out of difficult situations.

Real OPM is real people – family, friends, folks in local real estate groups – who want to put their money in a safe place with an easy return.

An OPM lender can get a 6% to 7% rate of return lending to you over a 2% or 3% rate keeping their money in a bank. You can use OPM to pay back your original lender  and free you up to make the best decision for your flip stuck on the market.

OPM is win-win.

More Help for a Flip Stuck on the Market

We’d be glad to help you find the best loan for your needs.

Reach out now! Rates are only going to rise, and now is the perfect time to get prepared for a market with more opportunities.

Email us at Mike@HardMoneyMike.com.

Happy Investing.

Text: "Where to Find HELOCs"

Where To Find HELOCs with the Best Terms

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Start using your HELOC today. Here’s where to find HELOCs.

There are three main places you can look to find HELOCs.

Where to Find a HELOC

A HELOC is a lien against a property that is set up much like a credit card.

A financial institution will set it up for you with a:

  • Credit limit – the maximum you can borrow from the HELOC.
  • Term length – the amount of time the HELOC is available and the limit is locked in (usually around 10 years).
  • Methods to access the money – how you can borrow the money (bank wire, debit card, etc.).

1. Credit Unions

Firstly, look for a HELOC at a credit union. Credit unions will have the best HELOC rates and terms. We’ve found that to be universal state-to-state.

Shop around at local credit unions. Make sure the lender you’re working with likes real estate investors. Each lender has their own niche. One may prefer doing car loans, but another will prioritize HELOCs.

You’ll find the best deal from a credit union, but you should still shop around for the right one.

2. Local Banks

Secondly, look into a local bank.

Local banks usually like to work with real estate investors. They’ll have more products available as far as HELOCs for rental properties and HELOCs on multiple properties.

3. National lenders

Thirdly, look for a HELOC with national lenders.

Now that the refi-boom is settling down, national lenders and mortgage brokers are starting to offer HELOCs. Going through a national lender will open you up to more products, but the cost is almost guaranteed to be higher.

Consider all three of these options to find the best deal you can. For a HELOC, the “best” deal involves not just rate but LTV.

Read the full article here.

Watch the video here:

https://youtu.be/MoUp2CAht0A