FHA 203k: You Can Finance Home Improvements

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From a new deck (where your dog has the best seat in the house!) to replacing carpet; from a kitchen remodel to adding a bathroom; and from the basement to the roof - home improvements can turn a house into a home. They add character and value to your house. But how do you pay for home improvements when your home has little-to-no equity? The current housing market has stolen equity away from many homeowners. One option is the FHA 203k home improvement loan. It's a way you can either buy a house and fix it up, or refinance and remodel.

Picture this: you're a home buyer going house to house with your real estate agent, and you find a lot of places you like. but the problem is that if it has enough bedrooms, it only has one bathroom. Or if it has a great kitchen, the basement is damp and unfinished. Maybe the house you really like is outdated on thepaint and flooring, and is probably full of lead-based paint chips. 

Any of these scanrios are enough to send home buyers on to the next house, frustrating them and the agent alike. Instead of moving on, consider this: each of these problems is fixed with the FHA 203k home improvement loan. You could buy any of these homes with the 203k and finance the work it takes to get the home to where you want it. Check out this before and after FHA 203k story for pictures and a personal story about how it worked.

Here's a look at some of the projects you could finance with this option:

• waterproof a basement
• kitchen remodel
• kitchen appliances
• paint the house inside & out
• lead-based paint abatement
• add a bathroom
• bathroom remodel
• new flooring (carpet, laminate floors, linoleum)
• roof repair
• build a deck
• repair or replace a porch
• fix grading issues that lead to a wet basement
• replace old windows
• energy efficient furnace/water heater
• add a second story to the home
• more...

You can see you have a lot of options with the FHA 203k when it comes to home improvements. So, how does this all work? You'll need to get mortgage pre-approval for the 203k. Then your mortgage consultant will walk you though the bid process. Once the loan is closed, the work on the home begins. Those are the basics. You can read more about the process in detail in "The FHA 203k Survival Guide." The free eBook covers your 203k options in detail. Get your copy at the button below.

You can also catch more information in the AmeriFirst FHA 203k playlist on YouTube. The videos (you can them below or here - FHA 203k Playlist) cover a ton of information in short bursts with national renovation lending expert Joe Daly.

(photo credit)