Contractor for 203K repair
Hey! I am looking at 2 potential fixer uppers in gloucester county for a personal residence that I was thinking for a 203k loan. I am new to this process but I understand that it needs to be done right and someone experienced in this area. Does anyone have any recommendations? I don't mind paying someone to do a site visit with me to get accurate numbers.
@Jerome Adams When you apply for your 203k, you will be assigned a 203k Consultant. There role is to be your advocate through the process and ensure your contractor is offering sound bids and providing good work.
Now, it doesn't always work out that way, but generally, incentives are appropriately aligned and most 203k consultants do a great job. These folks are also extremely familiar with local contractors in your area that can handle 203k projects. I'd suggest starting there. Be sure to still do your due diligence with the contractor, but your lender will call references and investigate as well. The nice thing about the 203k is that there are a few people involved to watch your back.
Best of luck!
@Jerome Adams
Hey! When I purchased my fixer upper back in December 2019 I also did a 203K loan. The contractor I used, and recommend, is 203K Construction LLC. The person who I worked with is Chris Silva and he was great! They were reasonably priced and worked with us to get our project budget within the cost requirements. They even came back and patched a few things no charge. They did a good job.
Best of luck with your potential 203k fixer upper!
I should also add that if you do a 203k loan you require to use a 203k registered contractor. So the work required can not be done by any contractor.
@Jerome Adams make sure that you talk to a lender about the 203k program, many companies arent offering renovation loans right now due to covid, also make sure to check with the building department and city hall for the towns you're considering to see how much of a backlog they have on building inspections and issuing permits, the back log of applications and delays in many towns is quite long
Originally posted by @Rick DiAgostino:I should also add that if you do a 203k loan you require to use a 203k registered contractor. So the work required can not be done by any contractor.
Thanks Rick I've been spending the past couple of days looking at the differences between a 203k and a homestyle one. This definitely has been a lot to look over but I'm glad I know now
Originally posted by @Vaughn Smith:@Jerome Adams make sure that you talk to a lender about the 203k program, many companies arent offering renovation loans right now due to covid, also make sure to check with the building department and city hall for the towns you're considering to see how much of a backlog they have on building inspections and issuing permits, the back log of applications and delays in many towns is quite long
Hi Vaughn thanks for the advice! I'll be speaking with my lender this week. But I see the value in this for potential investment properties myself and my partners have been looking at here in south jersey
Originally posted by @Dave Spooner:@Jerome Adams When you apply for your 203k, you will be assigned a 203k Consultant. There role is to be your advocate through the process and ensure your contractor is offering sound bids and providing good work.
Now, it doesn't always work out that way, but generally, incentives are appropriately aligned and most 203k consultants do a great job. These folks are also extremely familiar with local contractors in your area that can handle 203k projects. I'd suggest starting there. Be sure to still do your due diligence with the contractor, but your lender will call references and investigate as well. The nice thing about the 203k is that there are a few people involved to watch your back.
Best of luck!
Thanks Dave ! You helped me kick off my google search on what to look for. And now this is another tool in the tool belt as I look at investment properties here in the area.
@Rick DiAgostino That contractor you mentioned is being sued by many people according to the NJ court docket and that company no longer has a valid NJ contractor license.
@Jerome Adams I definitely recommend using Certified 203k Contractors and they can be found at 203kContractors.com.
Recommendations of contractors from the lender and/or 203k Consultants is not permitted by HUD guidelines according the HUD SFH 4000.1 and according to the Identity of Interest (Conflict of Interest) Certification required by HUD/FHA.
@Jerome Adams
I did a 203K remodel for a client about 4 years ago. You can pick whoever you want.. but.. there’s a lot of paperwork involved and a complete background check.
Once the paperwork was done it was clear sailing. I was given a deposit, and within days of completion of the remodel an inspector hired by HUD came to inspect, all was great and I was fully paid in a week.
Find who you want, and hopefully they will be willing to do all the paperwork.
@Paul Welden where did you find the court docket to check against contractors? I'd be eager to understand where I can go to check this before working with contractors in future!
a quick google search for NJ Docket Search should pull up the desired results and related link(s).
Can also try this link - NJ Docket Search