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I have a town house in southern California. It is 1650 square feet, 3bd/2.5 ba, has a yard and 2 car garage.
I want to do some light remodeling: new kitchen cabinets, granite countertops in kitchen and bathrooms, update bathroom tubs, and other things. My whole project will cost about $27,000 for materials. No labor costs.
My wife and I plan to remain living in the town home for at least another 5 years because starting a family. We will have our place paid off (& will be debt free) in a few months and may possibly sell it one day if our neighborhood gets bad. But we may never move because real estate is SUPER expensive near the beach where we live.
Is $27,000 too much to invest in my town house? My reason for the updates is not for resell but to make our home more custom.
I want us to be happy with what we have so we don’t go house poor buying a fancier house.
Also, should we save our money for 18 months to pay for the project in full, or should we get a loan?

My house in a “ratty” neighborhood needs a lot of work (carpets, paint, bathroom and kitchen renovations) in order for me to get my money out of it. However, I can’t afford to have this work done and am disabled, so I can’t do it myself. If I do no repairs and sell “as is”, I’ll lose my equity, but if I get a home improvement loan to pay for the work, the monthly costs plus the mortgage won’t leave me enough to live on. Is there a way to analyze the costs of one strategy versus the other? I’m currently living with my mother rent-free, while doing what I can to clean up the house. But the work the Realtor says has to be done is more than I can handle.

My house in a “ratty” neighborhood needs a lot of work (carpets, paint, bathroom and kitchen renovations) in order for me to get my money out of it. However, I can’t afford to have this work done and am disabled, so I can’t do it myself. If I do no repairs and sell “as is”, I’ll lose my equity, but if I get a home improvement loan to pay for the work, the monthly costs plus the mortgage won’t leave me enough to live on. Is there a way to analyze the costs of one strategy versus the other? I’m currently living with my mother rent-free, while doing what I can to clean up the house. But the work the Realtor says has to be done is more than I can handle.

I live in a rural area and we are wanting to sell our house and buy a new house. Our in-laws want to purchase our house and use it as rental income and farm our land. We owe an estimated $26,000 and it appraises for $46,000. I would like to pay off our house, pay off another debt for $4500, pay off a home improvement loan for $2000 and have enough to cover all closing costs, etc. so we have nothing coming out of pocket. Any advise what amount you think we should ask for it?

We want to make some significant home improvements, as well as have money to pay for our wedding expenses next year (we have some money saved up, but not enough to cover both).

My house in a “ratty” neighborhood needs a lot of work (carpets, paint, bathroom and kitchen renovations) in order for me to get my money out of it. However, I can’t afford to have this work done and am disabled, so I can’t do it myself. If I do no repairs and sell “as is”, I’ll lose my equity, but if I get a home improvement loan to pay for the work, the monthly costs plus the mortgage won’t leave me enough to live on. Is there a way to analyze the costs of one strategy versus the other? I’m currently living with my mother rent-free, while doing what I can to clean up the house. But the work the Realtor says has to be done is more than I can handle.  Read more... (141 words, estimated 34 secs reading time)

It depends on how low the interest rate is and what type of a loan you have. Compare the after tax interest on the loan with an after tax interest you can earn on a guaranteed investment, like a CD. If it’s a home equity loan that you used to make improvements, the interest should be tax deductible. That means you could compare your loan’s rate with the rate on the investment directly. If the loan is not tax deductible, make sure you reduce the investment interest rate by your marginal tax rate to make the comparison.

I want to refinance my home to take advantage of lower interests rates. I also want to renovate my house since it has severe structural problems.
Should I refinance and get cash out to use for home improvement or should I refinance without cash out and get a separate home improvement loan?
What is the difference between the two scenarios?

We are looking for a home improvement loan to start a couple of projects on our new home. The loan amount should be something around $15,000 to $20,000 with a low APR. Any suggestions on where to look? We’re in Indiana.

Hello. I live in Broome County, NY. My family needs money to fix up our house with. What home improvement, home renovation and home restoration grants should I apply for since I live in Broome County, NY? Please let me know. Thank you.