There comes a time in every homeowner’s life when they’re hit with a big-ticket repair item for their home.

Sometimes the hot water heater gives out and you wake up to a flooded garage. Others, a pipe breaks in the hallway and the carpet/floors are soaked. Maybe the siding starts to peel away and it’s too much for even a fresh coat of paint to hide. Maybe your roof is older than you realized and all of sudden there’s a water spot on your ceiling. Or worst, you get a letter from your insurance carrier saying you must replace your roof in order to maintain coverage. These are tough realities for many California homeowners. Once you realize that a roof replacement is eminent, the next question is often “How am I going to pay for this?”.

Hi, I’m Will Coleman, one of the owners of Sierra Hills Roofing. If you’re reading this blog, I’m guessing you’re in a similar situation as the one I painted in the prior paragraph. Even though it’s time for a big- ticket home repair that you may not have planned for, there are options to help finance the job and not break the bank. Plus, items like a new roof do help with curb appeal, energy efficiency and the home’s overall longevity. I’ve been in the roofing business for over a dozen years; and I’ve helped hundreds of homeowners finance their new roof. When Lauren and I started our company, I knew I could take some of my expertise from my years of working for other contractors as well as roofing manufacturers and help save our customers their time and money by presenting them with the best solutions for their project.

There are so many finance companies out there. How do you know which one is the best for you? Let’s start with the easiest way to finance a project…CASH. If you have cash available to finance a home project, you are in the driver’s seat when it comes to partnering with the right company to complete the job! For small businesses like ours, cash is a very appealing way to be paid…and that doesn’t just mean collecting a stack of dollar bills at the end of the project. Checks, money orders, cashiers’ checks, all function similarly to physical cash. They can all be deposited into a business quickly and without any additional fees. Often times, contractors will also discount the cost of your project if you are paying cash. My only word of advice here is to be careful who you hire! Resist hiring a contractor that asks for more than 10% of the project’s cost or $1,000 (whichever is lower) up front. Also, the cheapest bid isn’t always the best option. Make sure to compare and contrast proposals and make sure you are comparing apples to apples. Lastly, if you liked one contractor more than the rest of the ones you’ve interviewed…ask them if they will price match? The worst they can say is “no”, and often times they will be open to barter with you if you are paying with cash or financing the project with personal funds. Next, there are Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) options for financing. PACE is a financing program approved by the state of California and authorized by your local government. That said, funds to secure the financing come from private companies that are not affiliated with your local government. There is still a lot of benefit to utilizing these programs. First, the loans are not solely based on the credit score of the borrower. They are based more-so on the equity in your home. PACE loans are then applied to your property taxes. The payment terms and interest rates vary based on the length of the loan, but the payments are made through your property taxes. Sometimes, depending on your tax situation, the interest rates are even tax deductible. Be sure to check with your tax professional to learn how this applies to your specific project. Finally, PACE loans have no application fees, and no dealer fees to contractors that utilize them. This is very appealing to contractors, like Sierra Hills Roofing, who are PACE Approved Contractors and able to offer these types of loans to their customers.

Lastly, there’s an option to utilize financing through a third party. This would include: Mortgage Companies in the form of Home Equity Line of Credit or home refinance; Lending Institution in the form of a personal loan, or an unsecured loan for your home improvement project (meaning there is no lien); and finally, Credit Card Companies. Let’s start from the bottom and work our way back to the top! Financing your home improvement project with a credit card may seem appealing at first, I mean, think of all those miles you’d earn! In reality, credit card companies charge contractors like us fees to process the payments. In our case, we pay a 3.5% fee to collect payment via credit card. Rarely will a contractor agree to pay that fee on your behalf. Most of the time, an additional line item is listed on the proposal or contract explaining credit card fees are at the expense of the user. If you’re thinking about financing your project with your credit card, make sure that information is shared up front to avoid an awkward conversation at the end of the project, or a larger bill than you originally budgeted for. Lending institutions can be great options for financing a project. Most lending institutions will utilize things like your personal credit score and income for decisions on loan approvals. They also tend to follow national housing market trends when it comes to interest rates. Several years ago, when rates were in the high 2%’s low 3%’s…these were much more appealing options than they are today with rates in the high 7%’s and low 8%’s. These companies also charge dealer fees to contractors that utilize their services. On top of you, the homeowner, paying fees like loan origination, application, and loan processing…the contractor also pays a fee in order to offer the loan to their consumer.

I know this can all seem a bit overwhelming, but don’t let it intimidate you! We at Sierra Hills Roofing are happy to guide you through any available financing option. Together, let’s determine how to finance your project to fit your budget and your lifestyle!

Contact Sierra Hills Roofing today at 916-975-5095 for more information!

Sierra Hills Roofing is located at 3133 Penryn Rd. Suite 910 Penryn, CA 95663.