How Can a Fixer-Upper Expand Your Home Search?
Most buyers naturally gravitate toward move-in-ready homes. But when everyone is looking for the updated kitchen, renovated bathrooms and picture-perfect finishes, those homes may come with fewer options, more competition and a higher price tag.
Expanding your search to include homes that need updating can give you more properties to consider and potentially more flexibility in your budget.
Maybe you love a particular neighborhood, school district or commute, but renovated homes there are beyond what you're comfortable spending. A home that needs some TLC may offer more homes to choose from and a more affordable way into the location you want.
Instead of changing where you want to live, you may be able to change what you're willing to take on when you get there.
Why Pay for Someone Else's Renovation?
There's another potential advantage to buying a home that hasn't already been remodeled: You aren't necessarily paying a premium for someone else's choices.
That beautifully renovated kitchen may be included in the sales price, but what if you don't love the cabinets, countertops or flooring?
With a fixer-upper, you have the opportunity to make improvements that reflect your priorities, your needs and your style.
Maybe that means opening up the kitchen, creating a home office, updating an outdated bathroom or replacing flooring throughout the house. Instead of adapting to someone else's vision of “move-in ready,” you can create your own.
How Do You Finance a Fixer-Upper?
This is where we can help make the process easier.
Renovation financing allow qualified buyers to finance both the purchase of a home and eligible improvements through a single mortgage solution. That means you may not have to buy the home first and then figure out separately how you're going to pay for all the work.
And you don't have to become a renovation-loan expert, either.
Our job is to guide you through the financing process, explain your options and help you understand what to expect along the way. We'll work with you to keep the mortgage side moving so you have more time and energy for the fun decisions, like choosing finishes, prioritizing projects and imagining what that dated house could become.
Could a Fixer-Upper Be a Smarter Way to Buy?
It depends on the home, the improvements you want to make and your financial situation. But if you're struggling to find a home that checks every box at a price you're comfortable with, it may be worth expanding the search.
During Financial Planning Month, consider looking beyond the listing photos and asking a different question:
Could I buy the location I want and create the home I want?
If you're curious, let's talk before you start ruling homes out. We can help you understand your renovation financing options, how the process works and what may be possible within your budget.
The right home might not be finished yet. And that could be exactly what makes it right for you.
