203k Loans in Alaska

[Shaun Hatton]

Anyone done a 203k loan on the Kenai Peninsula? Wondering if there's HUD consultants and approved contractors around. Not sure if the reporting requirements are too time consuming for contractors in a busy market.

[Kaiden Foster]

Can't speak to contractors on the Peninsula as I'm in Anchorage and didn't get to that step of the 203k process.

However, just this past month, I called into 5-6 banks in Anchorage, both local and national but none of them are offering the 203k program. Rather, they offer the Alaska Renovation Loan but these require a higher % down than 203k. Have you found a bank that is able to do a 203k?

If not, I was referred to Walker Dunford at Prime Lending. He'll be able to do a 203k but the interest rates are higher as they treat it like a bridge loan, rather than a traditional mortgage (still 30-year term though). Without going through the pre-qual process, the estimated interest rate would have been around 4.75% on a property listed at $349k. On the bright side, it sounds like Prime Lending has a streamlined process that will make finding a contractor, closing on a property, and completing renovations a bit faster than normal, without as much red tape.

With such a hot market, it may be difficult to find a seller right now that will accept an offer using a 203k. I wanted to use the 203k on an older property that had been on the market for a while but the sellers didn't want to deal with all the additional hoops necessary to close with a 203k (or FHA for that matter).

Hope this helps!