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.

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!

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 even go 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!

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 tackling small, 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.

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.

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.

LendingClub is a peer-to-peer service that offers personal loan rates that are much lower than a bank. You can create a free account to learn more!

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.

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 cards and Lowe’s offers their own home improvement credit options to entice customers into their own stores.

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.

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 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 to 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:

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? .

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!

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!