10 Home Improvement Projects You Can Pay for with FHA 203k in Ohio

Whether you’re buying a house or you want to improve your current home, a home improvement loan like the FHA 203k can be your saving grace. Between the 203k Streamline and the Full 203k, there aren’t many projects out of your reach. In fact, so many projects are eligible for 203k financing, it’s easier to say what’s NOT covered. However, in the spirit of drumming up some design ideas for your home, we wanted to share a few ideas to help get the creative juices flowing.
Here’s a list of 10 home improvements to finance with the FHA 203k in Ohio:

 

 

1. New windows. Upgrade your old windows with vinyl replacement windows and help keep your energy costs down.
2. Repair or replace your roof. Ohio weather can wreak havoc on a home’s roof. Rain, wind, snow and ice can really damage the shingles and wood underneath.
3. Repaint your house. That same weather can also damage the exterior paint of a home.
4. New siding. Tired of the old wooden or aluminum siding on your Canton house? Replace it with all new siding. While you’re at it, put new insulation under the new siding.
5. Waterproof your basement. Mold removal and basement waterproofing can be financed with the FHA 203k.
6. Build a deck. Enjoy the Ohio summer with a deck on your current home or a house you’re looking at buying. This could vastly improve your standing among your friends as “the cool friend.”
7. Build a porch. Sometimes a deck just doesn’t cut it. You could add a porch to your Akron house and enjoy the great summer evenings with your family.
8. Kitchen remodeling. New counters, cabinets and appliances can all be a part of your new life in this home with the FHA 203k.
9. Convert or add a bathroom. Who couldn’t use an extra bathroom in the house?
10. Make your home match your style. From flooring to interior paint, redecorating your house with major home improvements can turn a house that used to be someone else’s into your dream home.

 

The great thing about the FHA 203k is that the added cost to the mortgage is quite low. You’ll pay about $6 a month more on your mortgage for every $1,000 in work you finance. So a $30,000 home renovation project with a new kitchen, new paint and a deck will add about $180 to your monthly house payment. And because the improvements increase the appraised value of the home, it’s worth more if you want to sell. When (and if) you decide to sell, you pay off the improvements with the higher sale price. In other words, you don’t take the debt with you like you would if you use store credit, credit cards or an unsecured loan.
Want to learn more about your renovation financing options? Download “The Ultimate Guide to Ohio Home Improvement Loans” at the button below. The free guide takes you through the process so you’re a more informed consumer. Get your copy today, courtesy Holland Remodeling & Building.

 

 

 

This is a guest post from Dan Moyle with AmeriFirst Home Mortgage. AmeriFirst is a leading FHA 203k lender. Dan has written hundreds of articles as the inbound marketing expert for AmeriFirst. Find the AmeriFirst blog here.

(Hammer photo: Flickr user Erich Ferdinand)

Randy J. – Orrville Ohio

Just writing to let you know that you guys did a great job on the new room in the basement. Rob did great work, and was helpful with good ideas on how to approach the job. Thanks!

5 Ways to Use the FHA 203k in Ohio to Get Your Dream Home

Ohio first time home buyers have enough to worry about. You don’t need to worry about finding your dream home, too. Driving from neighborhood to neighborhood from Akron to Medina can get tiresome and frustrating. Instead of the headache of going from Canton to Cleveland and back again, you can find an average house and turn it into your dream home with the help of the right mortgage program and the right contractor.
Fortunately, you’re reading a contractor’s article right now. You’re halfway there. Now let’s look at how the mortgage program shakes out. A few options include a home equity line of credit, borrowing from family and the FHA 203k home improvement loan. We all know how working with family typically goes, so let’s skip right to the other options.

 

Home equity line of credit vs. FHA 203k

A home equity line of credit (HELOC) is a loan/line of credit you take out on a home after you own it and you have equity built up in it. This means as soon as you buy it, you can’t really have one. At this point you have little-to-no equity built up in a home you’ve just bought. Yes, sometimes you can get a great deal on a home less than “what it’s worth.” However, this often means the house needs a little (or a lot of) work. So the appraisal will likely come in lower than you think until the the work is done and the home is worth more.

This is where the FHA 203k option comes into play. Did you know that an Akron-area home could sell for $90,000 but actually be worth $140,000 if you only put about $20,000 worth of work into a new kitchen plus a few other improvements? The FHA 203k can help finance that work into the cost of the mortgage, based on the after-improved value of the home once the work is done. In other words, your appraisal takes into account the improvements before they’re done!

 

So imagine being a first time home buyer, finding a home within your price range that could use a few home improvements. Once a professional takes care of the work, your home is worth that increased appraised value. But that’s just the icing: your house is now your dream home. Whether it’s a new kitchen, up-to-code flooring, new paint, a deck, a mold-free home or an all-new paint job inside and out, the house is more than a building. It’s yours. With that in mind, read these 6 ways you can use the FHA 203k in Ohio to get your dream home.

 

1. Make a man-cave. With 203k financing you can waterproof and upgrade your basement. This means you can turn it into a man cave with nice chairs, carpet and more! (some upgrades like TV’s aren’t eligible, but running an electrical system is)
2. Add a deck to make your house a fun place to go. A nice deck makes cookouts, parties and gatherings better. You can finance a deck replacement or new deck, or a screened-in porch with the FHA 203k.
3. Protect against the elements with new windows. Whether it’s the Ohio winter or the summer heat, good windows are a must. Windows are covered! You could get all new vinyl replacement windows and roll the cost right into the cost of the mortgage.
4. Add that extra bathroom. Maybe you have kids and want an extra bathroom. Maybe your wife needs the space, or your husband needs his own “throne.” Whatever your reasoning, an extra bathroom is a good idea. The Full 203k covers adding an additional room.
5. Repair or replace a roof and gutters. Roofing isn’t exactly a fun pastime. Instead of passing on a home that could use roof work, you can finance all of it right into an FHA 203k mortgage payment.

 

Learn more about the FHA 203k and other financing options for renovation financing with “The Ultimate Guide to Home Improvement Loans” from Holland Remodeling & Building and AmeriFirst Home Mortgage. The guide breaks down costs and other options when it comes to upgrading your Ohio home. Don’t get stuck with an average house – get your Ohio dream home!

 

 

*You can also refinance and improve your current home with the FHA 203k. We’ll cover that another time!

 

This is a guest post from Dan Moyle with AmeriFirst Home Mortgage. AmeriFirst is a leading FHA 203k lender. Dan has written hundreds of articles as the inbound marketing expert for AmeriFirst. Find the AmeriFirst blog here.

When Disaster Strikes in Ohio

When Disaster Strikes

Whether it’s smoke or fire damage, a bad storm or other water damage, when it comes to your home you want it back to normal as soon as possible. While we can’t bring back the irreplaceable, we can get right to work on the rest. So the question is: “When disaster strikes, where do I start?”

 

At Holland Remodeling and Building, we want to help get you back in the home you loved. We get right to work efficiently and quickly so you can get back to life. As northeast Ohio’s premier builder and remodeling company, we have experience in reconstruction, restoration and other emergency construction services. We make sure a skilled craftsman works on your project, because we know it’s precious to you. Our projects leaders have at least 10 years experience. Most have well over that.

 

At Holland Remodeling & Building we take time to become part of your team so the restoration process runs smoothly and accomplishes what you picture. Remember: Your satisfaction is our number one priority. When quality matters, count on Holland Remodeling & Building.

 

Let us know if we can help get your home back in order after a fire or natural disaster. Contact Holland Remodeling & Building today.

Rob & JoAnn G. – Solon Ohio

I just wanted to convey to you how JoAnn and I appreciate Holland Remodeling and Building at our home: JoAnn can’t stop raving about how kind, considerate, professional and hardworking your people and tradesmen are. I second that, and appreciate the diligence to do it right. Joe Soucek, Rob Bailey and Bob Lowry, along with their respective crew, are doing a great job.

In my humble experience, quality starts with the leadership of any business, so you must be doing many things right! Please accept my appreciation, and share it among your group.

Shane W. – Akron Ohio

Bob, from Holland Handyman Services made repairs on my home. He was quick and friendly and very knowledgeable. He did in several hours what would have taken me days. I recommend outsourcing to Holland Handyman Services to spare yourself the headache and to get it done right!

A Wet Basement in Ohio and Home Improvement Loans.

Anyone with a basement can tell you: water and moisture is a way of life. Sometimes it’s a bit damp in an Ohio basement. Sometimes it’s a full flood. Either way, homeowners can get frustrated. Before you tear down the house, move out or skip over buying a house with a basement, consider this: home improvement loans like the FHA 203k can help you finance the solution to your Ohio wet basement.

 

An FHA 203k Standard mortgage can help homeowners or buyers pay for repairs like waterproofing a basement because structural repairs are covered. Waterproofing a basement doesn’t always require structural work, but it might. Imagine having a finished basement that’s waterproof, where you could store all kinds of “stuff” without exposing it to the dangers of dampness. You could also maybe finish the basement with insulation and a big screen TV after you waterproof it. The possibilities are practically endless with the FHA 203k.

 

Want to move on from the basement? Once that project is finished you could also finance home improvements like:

 

• Add a bathroom to the house (who couldn’t use another bathroom?)
• Build or repair a deck
• Renovate a kitchen including new appliances
• Replace or repair plumbing
• New siding
• Vinyl replacement windows
• Sill plate replacement

 

The FHA 203k requires that a licensed contractor do the work (you don’t really want to take all of these projects on yourself anyway). A builder like Holland Remodeling & Building who understands the 203k financing option is a great asset to have on your team. In fact, download “The Ultimate Guide to Home Improvement Loans” at the button below, sponsored by Holland Remodeling & Building to learn more about the FHA 203k and other options for financing home improvements.

 

 

(Wet basement photo: Flickr user Andrew Magill)

 

This is a guest post from Dan Moyle with AmeriFirst Home Mortgage. AmeriFirst is a leading FHA 203k lender. Dan has written hundreds of articles as the inbound marketing expert for AmeriFirst. Find the AmeriFirst blog here.

7 Home Improvement Projects for an Ohio FHA 203k

The list of home improvement projects eligible for FHA 203k financing is long. From required repairs to desired upgrades, you have a lot of ground if you’re considering buying a house in Ohio that needs a little TLC. Instead going over every project covered by the FHA 203k, which would take a lot of your time, it might be better to take a quick glance at 7 home improvement projects you can finance with the 203k. Take a look at the picture and see if you can pick out the projects. You can also follow along with the list below.

 

 

 

1. New Roof. Whether it’s just shingles or the wood underneath, you can cover roof work costs with a 203k mortgage loan.
2. Gutters. Gutters keep water out of your roof, walls and basement. Yes, gutters fall under the 203k umbrella.
3. New Windows. Whether it’s the style or a concern for energy efficiency, it’s easy to see the benefits of rolling the costs into an FHA 203k. You can even look into the newest vinyl replacement windows.
4. New Doors. That front door looks old and in bad shape. You could replace it with a more solid door, or a decorative one.
5. Paint. This paint is peeling and chipping, and could be old enough to have lead in it. Inside and outside painting can be rolled in to th FHA 203k mortgage.
6. New Siding. Maybe you’d prefer aluminum or vinyl replacement siding instead of this traditional wood siding. Maybe there are holes in it. Whatever the reason, paying a contractor to replace the siding is another option.
7. Handrails or Deck. A simple handrail would help for the required work when it comes to an FHA mortgage, but wouldn’t a nice deck make the front of the house look great and add value? The 203k covers decks and patios.

 

You could find all kinds of other projects eligible for financing with the FHA 203k. But this short list gives you an idea of how versatile the loan program is. One of the great things about it is that you can use it to buy a new house in the Cleveland or Akron Ohio area, or you can refinance your current house into the 203k and make the improvements you want.

 

You can learn more about the FHA 203k and other financing options for upgrades with “The Ultimate Guide to Home Improvement Loans” at the button below. The eBook will help you understand your options when it comes to paying for home improvement projects on a house you want to buy, or the home you already own. Get your copy today.
(photo courtesy AmeriFirst Home Mortgage)

 

 

This is a guest post from Dan Moyle with AmeriFirst Home Mortgage. AmeriFirst is a leading FHA 203k lender. Dan has written hundreds of articles as the inbound marketing expert for AmeriFirst. Find the AmeriFirst blog here.

From Akron to Cleveland Home Winterization Saves Money in Northeast Ohio.

Save Worry, Energy Costs, and Future Maintenance Costs with Home Winterization.

 

While many Ohio home owners take heed to get coats, gloves and scarves out of storage in preparation for winter, many fail to make the same consideration for their home itself. A home that is poorly prepared for the winter can suffer the effects of damage for years into the future. Our customer service oriented Handyman Services division is fully prepared to make a professional assessment of your home winterization needs and carry out the kind of quality modifications that you’ll be able to trust this winter and into the future. Many Northeast Ohio homeowners have counted on Holland Remodeling’s Handyman Services to help winterize their homes.

 

 

Our Handyman Services accurate weatherproofing estimates can survey your home’s trouble spots from roof-line to foundation slap to insure the most dependable and energy efficient modifications are tailored specifically to your home.

 

No winter ensemble is complete without a warm hat, and similarly, no home is fully winterized without a quality and complex survey of its roof and roof drainage system, including its chimney and gutters. Our Handyman services are capable of surveying interior ceiling spots to rule out potential roof leaks caused by blistered, torn or missing shingles and sheathing. Our crews of fully licensed and insured professionals can also diagnose and repair buckled and curled shingles, often the result of weather battery or poor installation, to counteract roof-line moisture that can lead to cracking, frost build up and freezing. We have had homeowners in Hudson, Solon, Twinsburg, Macedonia, Sagamore Hills and Nordonia enjoy our extra care commitment.

 

While the main job of a chimney is of course to allow an avenue of escape for fireplace smoke, they can also be major culprits for moisture and air leaks where they connect with your home’s roof. No winterization survey is complete without a thorough review of your chimney’s structural integrity, step flashing and valley placement which can prevent leaking, drafts and other winter-born hazards from afflicting your roof. Customers in Medina, Wadsworth, Rittman, Sharron Township and Valley City have taken advantage of our preventative chimney assessment.

 

Our Handyman Services division can also determine whether ineffectively distributed, out-dated or antiquated insulation and attic ventilation is causing ice dams on your roof. Ice dams can cause a dangerous build of up weight that creates the potential for roof collapse. Ice damming can also pose a threat to children and family members at the ground level during thaws, when large chunks of ice can fall from your roof without warning.

 

With the large amounts of snow in places like Cleveland and Akron Ice Dams can be a serious issue.  The large amounts of ice and snow in leaf-congested or poorly-draining gutters can not only aide the in the creation of ice dams but also cause the gutters themselves collapse, which is why a gutter quality inspection is commonplace with any winterization survey.  Holland Remodeling is one of the few companies in Ohio who is equipped to deal with Ice Dam Removal. In homes from Akron to Cleveland Holland Remodeling has removed numerous ice dams with no damage to the shingles in the past few years. If you have Ice Dams forming call us for more details!

 

Windows are also paramount in determining how dependable your home can be in keeping its inhabitants warm and its energy costs down. Our handyman services division is fully equipped to conduct full window efficiency tests and offer potential energy efficient replacement options. Increasing the energy efficiency windows can reduce heating expenses in Northeast Ohio by as much as 30% according to recent data from the United States Department of Energy. Our clients in Middleburg Heights, Brunswick, Royalton, Parma, and Brecksville and throughout Northeast Ohio all appreciate the savings of energy efficient windows.

 

No winterization survey is fully accurate without a complete analysis of your home’s basement, which is one of the many services our trained Handyman Services division can offer. In addition to a full system flush, our team can also insulate your hot water heater, water and sewage pipes to prevent them from freezing and keep them functioning at peak performance levels. Un-insulated pipes are at risk of freezing and bursting, which can lead to a host of problems including basement flooding, placing your other basement-area utilities such as heating systems at risk.

 

Customer service is our number one priority. You can trust our staff of trained professionals to make specific weatherization and winterization recommendations that can prevent future structural and property damage while reducing energy costs and increasing the comfort of your home this winter.

5 Reasons to Avoid Ohio Home Improvement Loans

Home improvement loans can help home buyers turn average houses into dream homes. We’ve established that in previous articles about how home improvement loans rock. However, we’ve heard the question from some home owners and buyers, “Are renovation loans for everyone?” Of course the answer is “no.” Not everything that’s good is good for everyone. For instance take a nice, new shiny Harley-Davidson motorcycle. It’s great for someone who can ride and has the weather for it. However, take that same Harley to someone in Siberia who’s never ridden a motorcycle and you have the recipe for disaster. So no, home improvement loans aren’t for everyone.

 

Here are 5 reasons to avoid Ohio home improvement loans like the FHA 203k:

 

1. You love living in a house that was built in the 1960’s because the decor is still great. Never mind the inefficiency of the appliances, the old drafty windows and the wood stove. It’s “retro,” not outdated. Who really wants warm, efficient vinyl replacement windows anyway?
2. You’ve just won the Ohio lottery and you have enough cash to buy the home you love and pay someone cash to make changes. Plus you can buy their house and hire another contractor with cash.
3. You love living in mom and dad’s basement because it’s safe and secure. And your mom cooks a great Sunday dinner, so why leave? After all, buying your own house with a home improvement loan would mean getting used to a whole new basement and you’d miss out on those Sunday meals. Who needs privacy anyway? Time to play another round of Halo.
4. The mold in the basement is just preparing you for your camping trip into the great wide open. It’ll help keep your immune system in top-notch condition. Plus, it’s probably just a starter for a good bleu cheese.
5. Getting a home improvement loan could turn the average house you’re living in now or the home you’d like buy into a dream home. And you’re not into realizing dreams, you’re more of a dream crusher. Like Debbie Downer only worse.

 

If these reasons make sense to you, then please don’t download the eBook below. You’ll be just fine in that house with old windows, mold and your parents upstairs watching Matlock. Instead, if you’re interested in finding out how you can turn an average house into a dream home, then download “The Ultimate Guide to Home Improvement Loans” from AmeriFirst Home Mortgage and Holland Remodeling & Building. The short guide will walk you through the options, and give you an idea of what projects you could have Holland do in your house. Simply click the button below!

 

 

This is a guest post from Dan Moyle with AmeriFirst Home Mortgage. AmeriFirst is a leading FHA 203k lender. Dan has written hundreds of articles as the inbound marketing expert for AmeriFirst. Find the AmeriFirst blog here.