Something interesting we learned during the financing process was that getting a loan for a log cabin is quite different from getting one for a traditional “stick-built” home. Logically, a traditional home carries less financial risk for the bank because the market for that type of home is larger and more active. In other words, if the borrower were to default, a traditional home would be easier and quicker to sell.
Additionally, new log home construction is somewhat difficult to appraise and underwrite. We talked to four different banks before we finally reached out to our GC to ask for a recommendation. He had worked with Citywide on a log cabin loan before so was fairly confident we would have better luck with them.
We submitted our loan application to Citywide in October 2016 and closed on it May 2017. During those 7 months, we primarily worked on finalizing engineering plans and the detailed construction budget, both of which were required by the bank’s project management team.
Picture taken the day we closed on our construction loan (May 31, 2017).
P.S. We have pictures of the logs being processed in Canada. Stay tuned!
