I will save you all of the boring details about the loan process, but suffice it to say that it is not shocking custom home builders are struggling during this extended housing depression. Unless buyers are paying cash, securing a construction loan is challenging. I guess lenders see all of the unsold inventory and can't imagine why we just can't find an existing home.
Trust me when I say that we looked at hundreds of homes. We just didn't want to pay for other folks' updates or lack of updates which we knew we were going to have to redo to fit our tastes. After nearly purchasing a home just miles from where we currently live which would have been a money pit, we knew that the only way to get the home we wanted while still taking advantage of lower rates was to build it. Fortunately, we obtained an excellent construction loan which includes the cost of the lot and will convert to a conventional loan upon the completion of the build.
So, now instead of looking at houses to live in, our search became focused on either complete tear downs or lots for sale. We found a very beautiful, heavily treed corner lot that we think will work out perfectly. And, no tear down is required.
Since we had been working with our builder, Tom Greico, on plans and initial designs, we were able to get his feedback on the lot we had chosen. After getting his approval, we placed an offer...and it was accepted with a 60 day close allowing us time to get all of the necessary approvals from the lender for the loan which covers the land and construction. This loan will convert to a conventional loan upon completion of the project.
I took the photo below with my phone and does not do the property justice...and, we will have to remove at least two of the trees and also hire an arborist to assess the health of the beautiful remaining trees. The lot size is 125 x 100 which is a nice size but does have city easement requirements (one of the many new words I have added to my vocabulary to date). This just means that the new home must be built toward the back corner of the lot...basically the house will be built where I stood to take the picture.
Now that we have found our special place, the real fun begins as we are provided elevation and floor plans for consideration.
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