No one is going to loan money without charging something for it. But understanding all of the costs for loans to flip houses is critical before selecting a lender.

Borrowing money is often the only way to be able to make a large purchase. And the ability to borrow money is something that most consumers are willing and happy to pay when it comes to buying a home. But when you are in the real estate, you need to understand that the loans to flip houses often cost more than a traditional house loan or mortgage. This is because the most popular loans to flip houses Arizona are Arizona Hard Money Loans which are offered by private lenders rather than banks or mortgage companies.

Arizona Hard Money Loans, or asset-based loans, are not funded based on the borrower’s creditworthiness. Instead, they are offered based on the current value of the property being purchased. The property is used as collateral for the loan and the lender wants to be certain that the loan balance is always less than the current market value of the property. To ensure this, the lenders only offer between 70% and 80% of the property value.

But the benefits to these loans are many. First, the loan application process is very simple and fast. Second, the approval process is also very fast. And finally, the private lender can be much more flexible on the terms of the loan as opposed to the rather inflexible terms of a bank loan. But all of these benefits do come at a cost. The most noticeable difference is the increased interest rate on a hard money loan. Hard money interest rates can range from 7% clear up to 25% or more if the project appears to represent a very high risk of failure.

Breaking Down Costs

In addition to the higher interest rates, some lenders will charge a flat fee for an appraisal of the property as well as another fee for processing the loan documentation. There can also be fees such as a funding fee, administrative fee or closing fee. Because the lender is a private person, he or she is free to charge the fees that they choose to and to call them whatever they want. For this reason, it is important to ask for a total cost of the loan in writing and itemized to understand all of the costs involved in loans to flip houses.

Making a Choice