After several months, Thursday we closed on our construction loan! This was a long, drawn-out process, and I haven’t been making updates because it’s been frustrating paperwork and contractor wrangling and not worth sharing. We’re working on new permits, but we’re expecting that will be done in as little as a few weeks. Things are about to get pretty crazy, so I figured I should get back on the update wagon and keep everyone appraised. If you’re interested, we went with US Bank for their loan program. It lets us start from an unfinished state, and it converts to a traditional mortgage at the end.
We have most of the drain plumbing done, save some odds and ends. I have a list of things that I need to get wrapped up that is collecting new items faster than I’m getting things checked off. The top priority is the remaining roof and wall penetrations, which need to be in before the new roof and the siding.
The roof will be Owens Corning Duration Flex shingles, which should last through hail and wind and all the rest so I don’t have to get back onto that stupid ladder and the death trap of a roof again (except for the aforementioned penetrations).
Unfortunately, all of the house wrap will need to come off since it’s been exposed for too long. The windows that I installed I used the clips they gave me, which are apparently the wrong clips, and as a result all of the windows are at the wrong depth. They’ll put on Blueskin instead, which is a better product anyway. On top of that will go the two inches of rigid polyisocyanurate insulation and furring strips. If I had it to do over, I’d probably have stepped down to one inch, because we’d have a lot more siding options. As it is, with two inches of foam we basically have to use Hardie Plank cement fiber siding if we want it to be covered by warranty.
I wish the house wrap and the windows were the only thing that needs to be re-done, but they’re also going to redo some of the front porch structure as well because the wood we bought twisted and warped after we installed it. Our builder doesn’t recommend buying lumber from Menards, and now I can see why.
With the pandemic dragging on, we’re still working from home and the kids are at home for school. We’re not sure how this will work with construction taking place and we’re considering our options for vacating by the hour, day, week, and month. So, there’s a lot of exciting work about to start, and I need to go add a couple more things to my to do list!
September 28, 2020 at 1:00 pm
I’m very excited for you! As much as an ordeal as you all have been though, I must say your blog is the one that made me go from pie-in-the-sky ideas to a much more realistic understanding of what flat to SFH conversion actually entails. I know for sure if a similar project is in the cards for us it will not be a DIY affair as we have not even an ounce of the skills you and your wife brought to the table! What was the construction loan process like? Does it differ dramatically from a traditional mortgage application process?
September 28, 2020 at 1:28 pm
What was the problem with the wood? I guess you used regular PT wood. Would it have made a difference if you bought the PT-KD (kiln dried)?
October 6, 2020 at 7:09 pm
The 6×6 posts were kiln-dried AC2-treated, but still twisted like licorice after some time in the sun.
October 9, 2020 at 7:45 pm
Thanks! The process was different in a couple ways. First, you need to get an architect to draw up your finished plans, and a contractor that knows how to work with the bank. You need to get a full contract drawn up with all of the details and subs ironed out, and a price you’re willing to pay. Then you can go through the construction loan process with the bank. There’s an appraisal where they look at your plans and determine what the house is worth currently and once everything is done. They determine if it will be worth the cost of the loan to cover everything.
The loan program we went through with US Bank works as interest-only during the construction, and then converts to a traditional 30-year mortgage (with a competitive rate) once it’s done. Every time the contractors want money, they do an appraisal to see what work has been done, and then we sign off on it. We’re still at the beginning of this process, but we’ve closed and are planning to get work started soon.
October 12, 2020 at 10:40 am
Congrats on the loan! I’m still totally impressed. I stumbled across your blog in 2016 when I bought my bungalow and have been working on it for the last four and a half years, and still far away from being done. Amazing how things take years when you also have three young kids and are DIY’ing it. Still, you’ve done a ton. Looking forward to seeing more progress soon!
October 24, 2020 at 4:58 pm
Thanks! Good luck with your own project!