Any Loan Officers / builders for Q's?

[Sytes]

Looking at starting with a construction loan and convert it to a conventional loan.

Would a construction / conventional loan cover a floor plan such as this?

http://www.coolhouseplans.com/details.html?pid=25094

How about this?

http://www.barnpros.com/barn-plans-...d=5292&pagetitle=The+Denali+Barn+Apartment+36

I've heard conventional loans may be testy with certain builds and may cause hesitation for prospective future buyers due to loan difficulties.

I think I am pretty safe with the garage apt build though a little concerned about the other. Sure like the other though hoping to learn a bit on the process.

I am interested in purchasing a 3.5 acre parcel. Am I able to combine the land purchase with the construction? Is the well, septic, etc part of a construction?

If I buy the kit, how does that play into the sq foot cost for a contractor to build?

How do I identify the cost of sq footage when dealing with a garage open area equal to the living space (for both plans)?

Any other concerns or thoughts to consider?
Single family dwelling noted in covenants = no potential future rental of the apt over the garage if I build a home adjacent? Seems an obvious question though sometimes there are interesting responses of thoughts not considered.

Thanks!

 

[Moosie]

Construction loans cover everything if you qualify fort them. that is usually the first problem now a days...

Construction loans require a double loan closing fee where they used to cover one.

The home has to appraise under 80% LTV

You can purchase the Land with a construction loan but you'll need more money down on the land.But it gets back to your assets and credit. It's WAY better if the land is free and clear. THe first "draw" will go to paying off the land so Bank holds Title free and clear.

Kit cost for a contractor ? I don't get that question. Each contractor charges different prices for different houses and how busy they are. Get quotes. thats part of the construction loan process.

In closing, I'm not a lender but have looked into it. I own 2 pieces of propery. Have 20% assets for a down but with my credit hiccups have issues and have to go private money on Construction. I'll be paying 10% interest on the Construction money. Home values well though and I'
ll be the GC (General Contractor).

Good luck Amgio !!

 

[whiskeydog]

We're building a new home near Billings right now and the GC is carrying the entire loan (he required a non-refundable check for $25k) and the rest isn't due until closing. I'm not sure how common that is... It might be because it is his subdivision so maybe due to the amount of houses he builds there the bank works with him on the loans.

 

[Moosie]

Most GC's carry the loan. But there is a price to do that. It sounds like you wanted to secure the Coin and be the GC and just hire the subs to install?

 

[Muley Crazy]

Moose where are you looking to build?

 

[Moosie]

I'm kicking around August. But not might be until Feb/March in the spring. But soon hopefully. I have a piece of property in Lowman I'd like to sell but the market isn't really back on that yet. But I bought a 1/2 Acre in Nampa 2 years ago I want to throw a Casa on.

 

[Moosie]

More specifically , I own this piece : http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sal...28,43.568011,-116.517185_rect/17_zm/?view=map

I have the only unbuilt lot in the sub. Interesting that the map isn't more up to date.

 

[Hem]

We just moved in to our new home which I have been building for the last year.Our local bank is a stronghold,very conservative.This whole process has been a challenge with them, many new criteria as a result of the housing crash.I find it annoying that the banks essentially "f" ed things up and then the knee jerk result is make the loan process more difficult than it needs to be.In any case I would agree that owning your land outright provides a better collateral and aides in the loan process.One doesn't want to borrow for the land under a construction loan because your interest payments will immediately start off higher. and then obviously increase as you borrow to build.I think if the land can be paid for in advance generally eases the strain of the process ,but also improves your borrowing capacity.Otherwise, expect the banking process to test your patience. Also, do your best to finish the project before the bank requires a second appraisal.I didn't have much choice since I was trying to keep my construction business afloat and forced to work on income jobs while building my own.The cost for an appraisal is outrageous.Not to mention I had hoped to paint the house after closing out of pocket,but the bank/appraisers wouldn't allow it to protect the lender. So I had to cough up $ for the final paint job.The appraiser(now apparently building inspector) insisted I build a step with hand rail off our slider where my deck will eventually be. All a bunch of b.s. and on the verge of extortion.I will be glad to be done with all the paperwork,lien releases etc.Good luck guys with your dreams.

 

[idnative1948]

Good lord! You have more patience than I do, but you hung in there. Good for you.
Geez, and I whine when I need to pull a permit/inspection to do a sprinkler system. I am almost scared to do my last and final one this fall as it has been years.

We just moved in to our new home which I have been building for the last year.Our local bank is a stronghold,very conservative.This whole process has been a challenge with them, many new criteria as a result of the housing crash.I find it annoying that the banks essentially "f" ed things up and then the knee jerk result is make the loan process more difficult than it needs to be.In any case I would agree that owning your land outright provides a better collateral and aides in the loan process.One doesn't want to borrow for the land under a construction loan because your interest payments will immediately start off higher. and then obviously increase as you borrow to build.I think if the land can be paid for in advance generally eases the strain of the process ,but also improves your borrowing capacity.Otherwise, expect the banking process to test your patience. Also, do your best to finish the project before the bank requires a second appraisal.I didn't have much choice since I was trying to keep my construction business afloat and forced to work on income jobs while building my own.The cost for an appraisal is outrageous.Not to mention I had hoped to paint the house after closing out of pocket,but the bank/appraisers wouldn't allow it to protect the lender. So I had to cough up $ for the final paint job.The appraiser(now apparently building inspector) insisted I build a step with hand rail off our slider where my deck will eventually be. All a bunch of b.s. and on the verge of extortion.I will be glad to be done with all the paperwork,lien releases etc.Good luck guys with your dreams.

 

[BuzzH]

Wow, sounds like a few guys had a rough time with their house projects.

About 180 degrees from my experience.

 

[Sytes]

How about the garage in relation to the sq foot charge. I keep hearing expect a range of 115-130 per sq foot. I can not imagine that includes the sq footage for the garage as well, does it?

That would put that garage with a 900 sq foot living area at 216k w/o even considering the land, etc... I would imagine the complete turn key build to be around maybe 130k a the high side?

 

[mtmuley]

Normally the square footage price includes living area only. Obviously garage space cost less to finish. Like others have said, having the land first is a great help. No reason for building to be a nightmare either. Pick a reputable contractor. Talk to former clients and view past projects. Make damn sure the GC has ALL required insurance policies in place. Subs too. mtmuley

 

[Moosie]

Garages are about $7k a bay. Price per ft2 is based on living area.but a 2k ft2 house $100/ft house with no garage = $200,000. If you add 4 garages and it bumps your price up to $228,000. Then the contractor will quote you $114/ft2.

 

[TimeOnTarget]

Couple things I learned when I built my house...


1. Being the GC myself saved me about 10k.

2. Do not allow the bank to sell off your loan after closing. Make them keep it in house or the likely hood that you will be dealing with the likes of Bank of America will be pretty high. I learned this the hard way and now have to deal with BAC instead of my local bank. Anyone who has tried to deal with BAC know what a mess it is. If you have good credit you can negotiate this. If they wont keep it in house, Go to someone who will.

 

[Nameless Range]

Time on Target has some good advice about going with a bank that will keep your loan in house. Get that in writing.

I recently built a house, and saved a crapload by painting, flooring, tiling, and building a fireplace myself.

My wife is a super-organized task master, and one thing we learned through the process is to not think in terms of price per sq foot. There are so many variables when it comes to a build that using $/sq ft is not a particularly useful metric.

Talk to tons of banks. Find a loan officer who can meet your needs who has the mentality of a teacher. I can't stress that enough.

 

[Gellar]

Work hard to find similar structures in the area that have sold or are for sale and show them to your banker. He is worried that you will not be able to get out of it what you put into it. As long as the comparable structures are comparable you will be fine. I built a 40x50 post frame building that I am converting into a house and that is what I had to do. Our banker just wanted to make sure if we had to sell it that we would be able to get what we put into it.

 

[BuzzH]

I don't know how things normally go, but IMO, our house project was pretty smooth. We did buy the lot with cash, so maybe that was why the build went smoothly.

I also think having an honest GC/builder helps, which boils down to just your gut feeling. You eventually have to trust someone. The guy that built our house just seemed honest from the start,and everything he promised, he delivered...and actually more. We didn't make any changes during the build, although he did change a few things that worked in our favor 95% of the time (adding a deck in the front of the house that we didn't expect, etc.)

Prior to the build I did a couple changes to the plans with a room above the garage for storage and adding on to the back stall of the garage to essentially make a 4 car garage. I wanted an area for reloading, meat processing, etc. and that made the most sense.

The house finished at 2410 SF on the main level as well as 2410 in the finished basement 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms. Garage is 1100 SF. Just figuring the square footage of the main level to the total price, we came in at $124/SF. Nothing fancy in the house, but nothing chickenchit either (granite in the kitchen, all the bathrooms and laundry room, tile in all 3 bathrooms, hardwood in the office/living room, tile in the kitchen, custom cabinets, etc. etc. etc.) Fenced back yard, deck in the front and back, central air, fenced yard, landscaping, yada yada...turn key, completely finished.

I think it turned out pretty good and according to the final appraisal, the house is "worth" 70-80K more than we paid to have it built.

What we did with the loans was carried the construction loan through a local bank...the builder would submit draws on the construction loan as the build progressed with the bank making sure the subs were paid and the work was getting done. Once the construction was complete, we used them for the final home loan.

I have to say, the bank, the GC/Builder and the whole project ran flawlessly...and I'm 100% satisfied with the result. I think we did get lucky running into an honest contractor, for what we paid, we got a lot of house.

basement, which is basically a bar and trophy room with 2 bedrooms and a bathroom attached...9 foot 6 inch ceilings:

Main level:

Garage (heated) reloading area:

Finish work in the garage:

 

[mdunc8]

Buzz, the house looks great. We just started the building process ourselves. What kind of flooring is that in the kitchen and dinning room?

 

[BuzzH]

mdunc,

Good luck with the build, its a lot of work but worth it when you get exactly what you want.

The flooring is acacia...its actually quite a bit lighter than it looks in the photos.

 

[noharleyyet]

Very nice looking build Buzz...that's a lot of space,