Beginning Investor question on when to contact lender.

[Nestor D.]

Hello BP,

I’m a first time investor who’s looking for an understanding of the timeline on when to get in touch with a lender and a contractor.

I have a scenario where I want to do a fix-n-flip. I searched online and one house, let's call it Property X, has caught my attention. I've run a comparative analysis so I have a good idea of what the ARV will look like when it's all rehabbed and ready to sell. I also understand that as a rule of thumb, you should not even look at a property unless you have all funds readily available.

So then, assuming the lender would also pay for rehab/repair, how exactly would I go about estimating the rehab/repair costs on Property X when I have yet to step inside the house? I shouldn’t drive over to see the house unless I have a proof of funds letter from the lender, but I can’t get a proof of funds letter unless I know what the rehab/repair costs will be if that will be included, and I can’t get the rehab/repair costs unless I get inside the house.

Am I reading too much into this conondrum?

Thanks.