Ground-up construction loans for investors and builders. 85% LTC standard, up to 90% case by case for highly experienced borrowers, and up to 100% of the construction budget. Our standard is to wire draw funds within 24 to 48 hours after a draw is approved.
We are a direct lender using our own capital, so the answer comes from us and it comes fast. Brokers welcome, and we pay you.
| Loan amount | $200,000 – $5,000,000 |
|---|---|
| Leverage | 85% LTC standard, up to 90% case by case for highly experienced borrowers. Up to 100% of the construction budget |
| Rate | From 9%, as of October 2026 |
| Points | 1% to 2% of the loan amount |
| Interest | Charged only on funds drawn |
| Term | 9–18 months, fixed rate, interest-only |
| Prepayment | 3-month minimum interest. After 3 months, no prepayment penalty |
| Draw funding | Our standard: within 24 to 48 hours after a draw is approved |
| Time to close | 10–12 business days |
| Property types | 1–4 unit residential |
| Markets | Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee |
Updated . Business-purpose loans only.
Ground-up construction financing for investors and builders. Apply, or send us the deal and we will tell you where it prices.
A ground-up construction loan pays for a house that does not exist yet.
You buy the lot, or you already own it. We finance part of the land and up to all of the construction budget. The money comes out in draws as the work gets done, and you only pay interest on what has been drawn. When the house is finished you sell it or refinance into a rental loan, and we get paid off.
There is no house to appraise on day one, and that is what makes this different from a flip. On a flip there is an asset sitting there with a value. Here we are underwriting a budget, a set of plans, a permit, and your track record, against what the finished house should be worth. So the budget gets reviewed before we close, not after you are three draws in and short.
This is business-purpose financing. Investors and builders only. We do not do owner-occupied construction-to-perm.
The bulk of what we do. You build it, you sell it, we get paid off at closing.
Eligible on the same terms as single family. Two to four units, on one loan for the whole project.
Teardown or vacant, in a neighborhood that is already built out. These are usually the cleanest deals on the board because the comps are sitting on the same street.
Old house comes down, new one goes up. We finance the acquisition and the build in one loan.
Up to four units. Sell them or hold them and refinance into a DSCR loan.
Projects of two to four units, including townhomes, are financed with one loan for the whole project. On a townhome project you can release one unit at a time, and the details are on the townhome construction loans and partial releases page.
A typical deal: $150,000 lot, $475,000 construction budget, $825,000 finished. Total cost $625,000. We lend $531,000 at 85% of cost, which covers the entire construction budget plus part of the land, and you are in for about $94,000. If you already own the lot, that equity counts toward the $94,000.
What we do not finance: rural property, raw land with no build attached, and anything above four units.
Our leverage is 85% LTC standard, up to 90% case by case for highly experienced borrowers, and we can finance up to 100% of the construction budget. Total project cost means the land plus hard costs plus soft costs, including the interest reserve.
At the 85% LTC standard you contribute at least 15% of project cost; at up to 90%, case by case for highly experienced borrowers, at least 10%. That equity can come from cash, or from land you already own. If you bought the lot below market or have owned it while values moved, that equity works in your favor.
The full calculation, including a worked example, is on the construction loan down payment and LTC page.
Ground-up construction is a program for builders with a track record. You need at least three completed projects, including one verified exit on a comparable build within the last 36 months. Minimum credit score is 680, and the loan closes in the name of a U.S. entity such as an LLC, not in your personal name.
More track record gives access to more leverage: up to 90% LTC, case by case for highly experienced borrowers.
Full detail is on the ground-up construction loan requirements page, including the documents you will need and how a general contractor's track record can qualify a first-time developer.
We can finance the land purchase and the construction in the same loan. If you already own the lot, the equity in it counts toward your required contribution, which in many cases means little or no cash out of pocket at closing. We can also pull cash out against land equity, up to $500,000.
More on land purchase and land equity financing, including what qualifies as a buildable lot and how we value land you already own.
If the property has an existing house and you need time to subdivide or get permits before you build, a bridge to construction loan comes first, and the construction loan then refinances it. Vacant land does not qualify for that bridge.
Construction funds are held back and released in draws as the work gets done. You submit the draw and an inspection confirms the work is complete. Our standard is to wire funds within 24 to 48 hours after a draw is approved. Each draw requires a third-party inspection, which is a flat $295 per draw, virtual or in person.
Your budget needs to include a 5% contingency, and we review the full budget before closing so there are no surprises when you are three draws in.
See how construction loan draws work for the request process, inspections and funding timelines.
As of October 2026, rates start at 9%, and points are 1% to 2% of the loan amount. Every cost, with a 12-month example, is on the construction loan costs page.
Interest is charged only on the money you have actually drawn, not on the full loan amount. Over a 12-month build, that is a meaningful difference in carrying cost.
Ten to twelve business days.
That window covers document collection, the appraisal, the budget feasibility review, and permit validation where it is required. We order third-party reports early so they are running while the file comes together.
What slows deals down is almost always document collection. If you have your entity documents, two months of bank statements, your project budget, and your plans and permits ready when you apply, you close on the short end of that range.
Build it, list it, pay off the loan. We look at your projected sale price against your all-in cost and want to see a real profit at the end of it.
Keep the property and refinance into a DSCR loan. We do the DSCR side as well, so the takeout does not have to be a different lender and a different set of conditions. The finished property needs to cover its own debt service. The refinance requires the certificate of occupancy. On a duplex or fourplex, no more than 1 unit can be vacant at refinance.
Tell us the exit up front. It changes how we size the loan.
Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee.
We lend in urban and suburban markets. We do not do rural property, and we are not currently lending in Port Charlotte, Cape Coral, or Lehigh Acres.
Not sure whether your market qualifies? Send us the address.
You get an answer, not a slow maybe.
Most construction lenders will keep you in the pipeline for weeks and then find a reason not to close. By then your deposit is at risk and your contractor has moved on to someone else's job. We tell you up front whether we are doing the deal. If the answer is no, you hear it on the first call, not the third week.
That is possible because we are the direct lender. Our own capital, our own credit decisions, no committee in another state and no broker in the middle relaying questions. When something on the file needs a judgment call, the person making it is on the phone with you.
Ten to twelve business days to close a ground-up loan. Not two months.
Ten to twelve business days. Document collection is what usually determines whether you are at the short or long end of that.
Yes. We fund loans in our own name with our own capital, and we make credit decisions in-house.
Yes. Equity in land you already own counts toward your required contribution. If you have owned the lot for a while or bought it well, that equity may cover most or all of what you would otherwise bring in cash.
At least three completed projects, including one verified exit on a comparable build in the last 36 months. There is also a second path: if your general contractor has completed more than three ground-up builds in the last three years, you can qualify with no experience of your own.
Yes. We work with brokers and pay broker compensation on every deal.
No. Interest is charged only on funds that have been drawn.
Yes, as long as the total loan stays within our leverage: 85% LTC standard, up to 90% case by case for highly experienced borrowers. That is why land equity matters: it is usually what makes the full budget financeable.
$200,000 to $5,000,000.
Not on ground-up construction. This program is for 1–4 unit residential projects.
Or call and talk it through with the person who makes the decision.