Home improvement projects...

[Anonymous]

Hello All!

I'm not sure if I'm posting in the appropriate forum. Just hoping to get a bit of direction.... My husband and I have decided that we would like to attempt to sell our home in the future.  We were d/c'd from Chapter 7 bk in 12/15 in which we included our FHA mortgage ( we were never late and continued to pay as agreed post bk). I have heard and read conflicting info regarding the timing of elgibility for another FHA mortgage (2 or 3 yrs) . But, I think that we could qualify in two years, which would be about 1 year from now.  Now, my question: There are several repairs/updates that we would need to do in order to prepare to list our home.  Those repairs so far include window replacement, front door/ storm door replacement, bathtub replacement and new gutters and downspouts are the more major things.... we will also do some minor repairs like painting and replace interior doors and add shelving in our garage, etc.... My concern is obviously finances.  What is the smartest way to finance these repairs? We cannot afford to deplete our entire savings, which isnt that much to begin with. Should we maybe get a HELOC? and pay it off when we sell?  Personal loan?  Any thoughts or advice will be appreciated.  PS: Our home is completely liveable as is... the only reason we are looking to move is because by mom moved in with us, and we need more space to accomodate her, plus our family of 4 ( IE: a house with a finished basement with a bedroom and bathroom). SORRY FOR THE LONG POST! I have learned so much from this forum and just want our future financial decisions to be SMARTER than our previous ones :/

[Dalmus]

If I read correcty, your mortage was discharged in BK?

The benefit of taking out a HELOC depends on your equity position in the house, and

If the repairs you plan total more than the equity in your home (don't forget to include capital gains taxes for selling a home and realtor expenses), then you probably shouldn't bother with any major repairs, as you'd be spending money you'd never get back.

Obviously, if you had to go through BK, you really don't want to take out any unncessary loans unless you KNOW you'll be able to pay them off rather quickly.

It comes back to the equity position in the house.  What is he market value?  What's the balance of the mortgage?

[Anonymous]

Right....

Our Realtor is my brother ( who also works in our area) and he estimates our homes value somewhere around 210k. Also, because we have sort of a "family" discount, we can probably get a little knocked off of the realtors fees... We currently owe 162.  You're right, we do not want to take out unnecessary loans and certainly do not want to spend $$ in areas that we wont see any return.  

[grillandwinemaster]

Some off the repairs you listed sound like you can do them yourself. Gutters, doors, shelves, painting etc etc.

That being the case, I would try applying for a Lowe's credit card. There backed by Synchrony, and they can be bk friendly. Of course That depends on what credit you have established post bk. As always, YMMV

Best credit wishes to you!

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your reply. I was actually just approved for a lowes card. Low limit though... $500. And yes, we are not opposed to doing any DIY projects that we are able to do ourselves.... idk about gutters though... that might be beyond my husband's skill level, lol. We have a really good handyman who is skilled in multiple things that could help us out at a reasonable cost too. We've thankfully re established pretty well post bk. Currently have 10k nrewards with Navy, Discover ( hubby) and our local CU. Scores are mid 600.... So, really needing to garden in the credit dept if we are going to attempt to qualify for a mortgage in the future. But at the same time, we want to make our home the best that we can. I think our largest expenses would be our windows (original to the home) and our main bathtub needs replaced. We once had a company come out to give an estimate for windows that quoted us $40,000!!! That is completely out of the question right now. I know that was an expensive quote but still. We don't really know what a more realistic quote would be, if we had a contractor replace them instead.

[rmduhon]

For your Lowe's card, call Credit Solutions or chat (or use the new CLI setup they have). With a mid 600 score you should be able to get an increase to around 5,000-10,000. Just ask for 15,000. I recently went from 700 SL to 12,000 Of course, YMMV.

[Anonymous]

I tried that... they denied me. That's ok. Just thankful to be in their graces again ( they were IIB). So maybe we can just charge a little bit with them and try again later.

[Anonymous]

Agreed with you. Spending lots of savings on home improvement is not a cool idea. One should be smart enough to spend money only where it is needed. You can easily get your home improved in less cost by hiring professionals who can guide you correctly and can tell you about the actual price of each and every object required in home remodelling. One of the trusted team I know is Walk in tubs Mesa, who provide a bathtub replacement and installation in very cheap price. Last month, I installed a walk in tub with them through one of my friend recommendation. They provide their best service in the bathtub replacement and make your bathroom look stylish and elegant in very less cost.