Financial Services

Knowing your budget, allowing for extras and sticking with the overall financial goal is critical to keeping the stress of building to a minimum. The first step in building your dream home is establishing what you can afford. Your site selection, home design and timing should all be driven by your final ability to afford. Do not over-extend yourself and be honest with your builder.

We sometimes have clients who already own land that come to us with their dream house in mind. Unfortunately, the land cost and the cost needed to prepare it often takes up a significant portion of their budget. In this case, the house must be compromised or the budget must be stretched — neither are the best situation.

Know your budget before you purchase land or design your home.

Finding the right lender is also a key factor in the enjoyment level of your build. It is important to find a lender who is experienced in construction lending as well as permanent financing. They should also be familiar with your area and the building challenges that arise. For example, if you’re building in the mountains where land preparation and cost is more extensive, do not get a lender from a city in another state.

American Craftsman Homes has a couple designated lenders who are familiar with our building process and make construction lending seamless and understandable. They also provide discounts when construction and permanent financing are through the same entity. Tracking your progress and keeping budget comparisons will give you more control over your project. American Craftsman also tracks your expenses and provides budget comparisons with each draw request.

Remaining in your home while you build…

Many clients are worried about starting construction financing while remaining in their current residence. This is commonly done. Most construction lenders require 10 to 20% equity in the construction project. This often comes through a cash purchase of the property or through a home equity loan on the current residence. Interest is not paid on the construction loan until the money is spent. For example, if only the foundation is standing, you are paying interest only on amounts spent up through the foundation. As a result, the interest payments do not get large until later on in the project, so double dipping is generally a short-term situation. Timing the sale of your home can be stressful, so it is important to allow for an extra couple months payments in your budget to reduce your stress. We have not had a project yet, however, where the transition did not work out fine.

We offer a variety of services and levels of construction, inlcuding the following: