Questions To Ask Your One-Time Close Lender
September 8, 2022
FHA, VA, and USDA: One-Time Close Loans
Want More Information About One-Time Close Loans?
We have done extensive research on the FHA (Federal Housing Administration) and the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs) One-Time Close Construction loan programs. We have spoken directly to licensed lenders that originate these residential loan types in most states and each company has supplied us the guidelines for their products. We can connect you with mortgage loan officers who work for lenders that know the product well and have consistently provided quality service. If you are interested in being contacted by a licensed lender in your area, please send responses to the questions below. All information is treated confidentially.
OneTimeClose.com provides information and connects consumers to qualified One-Time Close lenders to raise awareness about this loan product and to help consumers receive higher quality service. We are not paid for endorsing or recommending the lenders or loan originators and do not otherwise benefit from doing so. Consumers should shop for mortgage services and compare their options before agreeing to proceed.
Please note that investor guidelines for the FHA and VA One-Time Close Construction Program only allows for single family dwellings (1 unit) – and NOT for multi-family units (no duplexes, triplexes or fourplexes). In addition, the following homes/building styles are not allowed under these programs, including but not limited to: Kit Homes, Barndominiums, Log Cabin Homes, Shipping Container Homes, Stilt Homes, Solar (only) or Wind Powered (only) Homes, Dome Homes, Bermed Earth Sheltered Homes, Tiny Homes, Accessory Dwelling Units, or A-Framed Homes.
All known FHA/VA One-Time Close Lenders known to our company will not allow a borrower to act as their own contractor, whatsoever. There cannot be self-builds, relative builds, or employer builds.
Contact Us: Send Us Your Request – Spam Safe
Please send your email request to [email protected] which authorizes OneTimeClose.com to share your personal information with one mortgage lender licensed in your area to contact you. No SSN required • No credit check • 100% free to get started
1. Send your first and last name, e-mail address, and contact telephone number.
2. Tell us the city and state of the proposed property.
3. Tell us your and/or the Co-borrower’s credit profile: Excellent – (680+), Good - (640-679), Fair – (620-639) or Poor- (Below 620). 620 is the minimum qualifying credit score for this product.
4. Are you or your spouse (Co-borrower) eligible veterans? If either of you are eligible veterans, down payments as low as $0 may be available up to the maximum amount your debt-to-income ratio per VA will allow – there are no maximum loan amounts as per VA guidelines. Most lenders will go up to $1,500,000 and review higher loan amounts on a case-by-case basis. If not, the FHA down payment is 3.5% up to the maximum FHA lending limit for your county.
There are some good questions to ask when you are comparing lenders for your construction loan. Not all lenders offer the same loan terms and you will want to know how each lender approaches the issues mentioned below.
Single-Close Construction Loan Terms: Interest-Only Payments
Your construction loan features two phases. The first is the construction phase, which is as the name implies the period of time necessary to build your home, get inspections, etc. The second phase is the “permanent” phase, which is when you see the loan converted to your mortgage.
Be sure to ask the lender about that financial institution’s policies regarding interest-only payments during the construction phase. Will you be making such payments? For how long? At what point will the loan convert to the full mortgage payment?
In some cases, the answers may be fairly standard, but it’s not safe to assume you will get identical terms and conditions with any One-Time Close construction loan lender.
Types Of Property
Not all lenders offer the same terms for acceptable property types. Some may allow you to use a single-close loan to build a vacation home, while others may not.
Be sure to mention the specific type of property you want to build with the construction loan early in the discussion; you don’t want to waste your time looking into terms for a vacation property or a barndominium if the lender refuses to finance such projects.
And depending on the nature of your loan, the risk there can be high. For example, some single-close lenders may be willing to finance the construction of multi-unit properties. But others do not approve single-close loans for homes larger than one living unit. You will need to know the lender’s policy on property size as well as property types.
Some Homes Can’t Be Financed
Many single-close construction loan programs feature prohibitions on tiny homes, container homes, and houses that have unique features such as relying solely on wind power. Kit homes are often on the list of projects that won’t be financed, but much depends on the lender and the housing market where you want to build.
Compare Lenders By Reputation
One piece of advice you might not read much about when it comes to shopping around for a lender has to do with online reputation.
Consider reviewing the online comments about the lenders you are comparing in the same way you want to review contractors--you don’t just review the prices and the options, you look for customer feedback, too. The same rules apply; if you see red flags or indications that a given service provider (lender or otherwise) in customer reviews, you should consider those experiences when trying to decide where to get your construction loan from.
Single-Close Construction Loan Terms: Interest-Only Payments
Your construction loan features two phases. The first is the construction phase, which is as the name implies the period of time necessary to build your home, get inspections, etc. The second phase is the “permanent” phase, which is when you see the loan converted to your mortgage.
Be sure to ask the lender about that financial institution’s policies regarding interest-only payments during the construction phase. Will you be making such payments? For how long? At what point will the loan convert to the full mortgage payment?
In some cases, the answers may be fairly standard, but it’s not safe to assume you will get identical terms and conditions with any One-Time Close construction loan lender.
Types Of Property
Not all lenders offer the same terms for acceptable property types. Some may allow you to use a single-close loan to build a vacation home, while others may not.
Be sure to mention the specific type of property you want to build with the construction loan early in the discussion; you don’t want to waste your time looking into terms for a vacation property or a barndominium if the lender refuses to finance such projects.
And depending on the nature of your loan, the risk there can be high. For example, some single-close lenders may be willing to finance the construction of multi-unit properties. But others do not approve single-close loans for homes larger than one living unit. You will need to know the lender’s policy on property size as well as property types.
Some Homes Can’t Be Financed
Many single-close construction loan programs feature prohibitions on tiny homes, container homes, and houses that have unique features such as relying solely on wind power. Kit homes are often on the list of projects that won’t be financed, but much depends on the lender and the housing market where you want to build.
Compare Lenders By Reputation
One piece of advice you might not read much about when it comes to shopping around for a lender has to do with online reputation.
Consider reviewing the online comments about the lenders you are comparing in the same way you want to review contractors--you don’t just review the prices and the options, you look for customer feedback, too. The same rules apply; if you see red flags or indications that a given service provider (lender or otherwise) in customer reviews, you should consider those experiences when trying to decide where to get your construction loan from.
FHA, VA, and USDA: One-Time Close LoansWant More Information About One-Time Close Loans?We have done extensive research on the FHA (Federal Housing Administration) and the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs) One-Time Close Construction loan programs. We have spoken directly to licensed lenders that originate these residential loan types in most states and each company has supplied us the guidelines for their products. We can connect you with mortgage loan officers who work for lenders that know the product well and have consistently provided quality service. If you are interested in being contacted by a licensed lender in your area, please send responses to the questions below. All information is treated confidentially.
OneTimeClose.com provides information and connects consumers to qualified One-Time Close lenders to raise awareness about this loan product and to help consumers receive higher quality service. We are not paid for endorsing or recommending the lenders or loan originators and do not otherwise benefit from doing so. Consumers should shop for mortgage services and compare their options before agreeing to proceed.
Please note that investor guidelines for the FHA and VA One-Time Close Construction Program only allows for single family dwellings (1 unit) – and NOT for multi-family units (no duplexes, triplexes or fourplexes). In addition, the following homes/building styles are not allowed under these programs, including but not limited to: Kit Homes, Barndominiums, Log Cabin Homes, Shipping Container Homes, Stilt Homes, Solar (only) or Wind Powered (only) Homes, Dome Homes, Bermed Earth Sheltered Homes, Tiny Homes, Accessory Dwelling Units, or A-Framed Homes.
All known FHA/VA One-Time Close Lenders known to our company will not allow a borrower to act as their own contractor, whatsoever. There cannot be self-builds, relative builds, or employer builds.
Contact Us: Send Us Your Request – Spam Safe
Please send your email request to [email protected] which authorizes OneTimeClose.com to share your personal information with one mortgage lender licensed in your area to contact you. No SSN required • No credit check • 100% free to get started
1. Send your first and last name, e-mail address, and contact telephone number.
2. Tell us the city and state of the proposed property.
3. Tell us your and/or the Co-borrower’s credit profile: Excellent – (680+), Good - (640-679), Fair – (620-639) or Poor- (Below 620). 620 is the minimum qualifying credit score for this product.
4. Are you or your spouse (Co-borrower) eligible veterans? If either of you are eligible veterans, down payments as low as $0 may be available up to the maximum amount your debt-to-income ratio per VA will allow – there are no maximum loan amounts as per VA guidelines. Most lenders will go up to $1,500,000 and review higher loan amounts on a case-by-case basis. If not, the FHA down payment is 3.5% up to the maximum FHA lending limit for your county.
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