Buying an old house to fix up has an attraction for many people. If you can find a house with charm and character, a renovation may enable you to create just the living environment that you want. You should start with a good real estate agent to help you locate the right house and recommend lenders who make both acquisition and construction loans.

Financing a renovation is perhaps the most difficult part of the whole project, especially if the house needs extensive work. Few banks will make these loans to people who are not professional developers. You should prepare for your loan application by having a written proposal. It helps to have an engineer's report or architectural plans and to include estimates from contractors covering the costs and timetables for the work to be done. Your real estate agent can help you put together a market analysis of the neighborhood to show that you will not be over-improving the property compared with other homes in the area.

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