The Ugly House in a Great Neighborhood

Have you ever driven through a neighborhood you would LOVE to live in only to see houses that are either too expensive or houses that are pretty beat up? It can be so discouraging to look and look and look for the ‘perfect’ house and you just can’t seem to find it. You’re frustrated. Your spouse is frustrated. You begin to sense even your real estate agent is getting frustrated. 

Maybe you’ve looked at new construction only to find lot prices are too expensive to build your dream home within your budget.

Now what???? 

AEG Homes has partnered with SunCoast Homes & Development to work to give you the house you want in the neighborhood you’ve been dreaming about. When we first walk around and through a house we look for problems…expensive problems. Eugene and David Gurganus with SunCoast are astute at spotting things the untrained eye would miss and thus catch issues you definitely don’t want to deal with later. 

They can show you if there are structural issues and if so, what needs to be done, how much will it cost, will it be approved by an engineer and inspector, etc? They will also answer questions, such as:

Can that wall be removed? 

Can we move the kitchen over to this wall and open up the floor plan? 

Do we keep the cabinets or refinished them? 

Can we expand this bathroom? 

Can we move plumbing?

Can we make his & hers walk-in closets? 

Can we add a bathroom?

Can we do all new landscaping?

And…how much is this all going to cost?????

Teresa with AEG Homes is your numbers girl. After consulting with Eugene and David, she’s the one who can put everything together and tell you if your vision for this particular house will work within your budget and timeframe. There is more to renovating a house than meets the eye, so she also works with Eugene and David to avoid surprises! Not only will she go over options like shower tile, backsplashes, flooring, paint colors but also financing questions. 

Not all lenders will lend on homes that are not completed and in livable condition so this is something very important to consider before diving in head first. Options are good…so let’s talk about just a few! 

Renovations build equity in your home! So…what does that mean for your lending situation?? Sometimes when the house is appraised at the end of the project you will have built in enough equity that you don’t have to put as much money down as you had originally anticipated. What great news that is!! These things can all be discussed once you’ve decided what course of action you’d like to take but it is often something buyers don’t consider. We’re here to help not only give you the home you’ve been dreaming of, but also introduce you to a new way of looking at financing it!

Interested?? How does this process work?

Let’s start with the end in mind…

When searching for a home, it’s always best to start by getting pre-approved so you know what you can and want to afford. If you need help finding someone to help you, please let us know! We’d be happy to give you some direction! 

For now, here are some things to consider…

 There is an FHA loan program for those who would like to buy a fixer upper. To read more about this loan and what is necessary to quality, check out this article: https://www.fortunebuilders.com/fha-203k-loan/

If a purchase and renovation is what you would like to consider a great place to start is with David Stein at Family First Funding, LLC. They offer this government backed loan product just for this scenario…as well as many others. Here is an article from their website explaining what this loan product entails. https://www.fam1fund.com/page/fannie-mae-homestyle

While we cannot guarantee your situation will fit into the parameters of this loan, we can tell you we have had pleasant and timely experiences with David. He can be reached at: [email protected]

Richard McIntyre with Blue Harbor Bank is one of our very favorite people and will work hard to help you if he can. His email address is [email protected] 

Joe Wright at Quicken Loans has been a joy to work with on past projects. He can be reached at [email protected] 

Sometimes it’s better to get a first and a second mortgage to avoid paying the dreaded private mortgage insurance! This also can allow you to pull out some of the equity you created in your new home. This certainly isn’t always an option, but it just goes to show you there are other ways to look at the financing aspect.

If these do not fit, Teresa will begin looking for lenders that may work better for your situation and if you have your own, that is fantastic too! 

At times, it may work best for one of our companies to finance the entire project with a purchase and sale agreement in place for you to close and take possession at the time of completion. We are open to all sorts of options to best help you!

Once you find a home you’re interested in, now it’s definitely time to contact us if you haven’t already! (We love realtors, so if you have one we’re happy to have them involved. If not, that is okay too! We can put offers in and negotiate prices on your behalf, as well!) 

We’ll meet you over at the house you’re interested in to go through the house and let you know what we see starting with the expensive stuff!!! Foundation, crawl space, if there is one….roof, existing additions, checking permits on those additions, code violations, HVAC units, water heaters, plumbing, damage from water, pests, etc. 

If there is any question about any of these major items we will call an expert in that field to get all the clarity we need to make a decision as to whether we should move forward or not. If you really love the house we can construct an offer to get it under contract and use your due diligence period to confirm any unknowns we’re dealing with. This allows you to keep this house from being sold to someone else and also affords you the time you need to make sure it will work for your needs and your budget. There are some things to discuss about this process, but we can tackle that as we go.

Now we can then talk about what visions you have for this house. (Setting up a Pinterest board is a great way to show us!) Once we have your wish list Eugene, David and Teresa will consult with each other and determine what it will cost and how much time it will take so you can make an informed decision.

After you decide how you’d like to proceed we either move toward closing on this particular house or keep looking for another more suitable to your wants and needs. 

The type of loan you get for this project (or if we get the loan on your behalf) will determine several things. Some of the questions that will need to be answered are as such:

Who is carrying the loan during the renovation process?

How much needs to be put down on the loan?

Where does the renovation money come from and how is it disbursed? (Usually the renovation money sits in an escrow account to be distributed in draws. In order for a draw to be distributed, the work has to be inspected by a third party that is working with the lender. Eugene and David will put in for a draw. The lender will order the inspection. The inspector will report back the lender and then the draw is disbursed according the work accomplished.) 

If the money for the renovation is coming from you, then you can do the inspection yourself and go over the work done with Eugene and David.

What is the cost for the purchase price, renovations costs, interest to the lender, closing costs, etc? (Teresa will go over this prior to even proceeding with the initial closing. We will need to determine what your home will be worth at the end of the project to decide if this is a project worth pursuing.)

Now the fun begins!

Once we close then the fun begins! Eugene and David will decide in what order the work needs to be done. Eugene always…always has a reason behind why he does what he does and when he does it. Experience has been a good teacher! 

They will then organize their crew and begin. Eugene is a professional problem solver so while this process may be stressful for you, this is his everyday life. Everyone wants you to feel free to ask questions so please ask! Because this is the everyday life for a builder there may be things he may not think to mention as it is second nature to him, so if you find something confusing we invite you to just ask Eugene or David! We will also do our best to keep you informed as the project moves along. 

Early in the process we will sit down with you and your Pinterest board to see what finishes you would like that will fit within your budget. We will talk interior and exterior paint colors, tile color…floor type, style and color, landscaping, etc as well as the overall feel you’d like for your home.

As things are moving along you are free to stop by to see what things are looking like and if you live out of town we will be sure to send you pictures and video updates as well as what you can expect next. It seems in most construction projects unforeseen things go wrong. It’s normal and we’re used to it. When or if that happens we will work closely to determine what direction you would like to go. We work hard on the frontend to try to catch all of these things but we’re human just like everyone else. We will always work hard to do what we can to remedy any situation the best we can and keep you happy at the same time!

Coming to completion

As things get close to completion we will then pick a closing date with the closing attorney of your choice. If you don’t have one in mind, we have several we use and would be happy to refer you to one. Your lender will order an appraisal and will be conducted by a third party. Once you have given your lender everything they need to move forward with closing they will provide all of the necessary paperwork to the closing attorney as will we. 

This can be a stressful yet rewarding process. Sometimes there are delays we can’t control. Sometimes the lender doesn’t communicate well with you. Sometimes the closing attorney is super busy and doesn’t have time to close the loan until next month! We invite you to go with the flow. Do what you can and let go of what you can’t. This is not a sprint. It’s a marathon and it will be as enjoyable as we all make it. What we can promise is WE will do are absolute best to make this a fun process! We want you HAPPY!!!

If this sounds like something you’d like to talk about please feel free to shoot either of us a text and/or email! We’d love to meet you and hear all about your visions and even the struggles you’re having finding just the right home for you!

Cheers!

Teresa   406-661-7202   [email protected]

Eugene  252-241-1510   [email protected]