I've put off this post, hoping for better news, but so far it's not to be. As Builder David predicted, the bank's as-built appraisal came in very low. By the time the bank applies the 80% factor, they would be able to lend me less than half what it would cost to pay off the lot mortgage and build the house.
This is worse than I ever expected, and Banker Steve was surprised and disappointed as well. All along he has been very optimistic, assuring me after the credit check was completed that we could get this project underway. It's a huge disappointment. The real estate market in St. Marys is just dismal: an over-large inventory of lots at depressed values, and the comparables they used were from a golf course community that's a big step down from CH. Clearly, no one in CH can hope to sell their homes even if they wanted to, or even refinance.
My options are to find a pile of cash to make up the difference (not going to happen); sit tight; buy a house somewhere else and renovate (not my dream, for sure); or take my project to another location where the appraisal will support the building cost.
In August I took a trip south and looked at communities in Beaufort, SC, where Jane lives, then spent a couple of days in St. Simons Island, where Steve urged me to focus. We spent a few hours driving through various communities, looking at marsh-front lots and getting a feel for the different areas. He feels that if I can find a well-priced piece of land (maybe bank-owned), we should be able to generate an appraisal at the level I need it to be.
I left with the name of a real estate broker, whom I contacted when I got home. He's keeping an eye out for lots, and I told him I'd like to rent a house for maybe a month after the first of the year and spend the time looking at virtually everything that's available, getting a feel for island living, and meeting a bunch of people (with help from my friends Russell and Cindy).
This is a setback, for sure, but I'm not giving up. I have put my heart into this beautiful home that Jane has designed, and am not ready to relegate the plans to an expensive coffee table artifact representing what might have been. In the meantime, nothing's going to happen for a good while.
This is worse than I ever expected, and Banker Steve was surprised and disappointed as well. All along he has been very optimistic, assuring me after the credit check was completed that we could get this project underway. It's a huge disappointment. The real estate market in St. Marys is just dismal: an over-large inventory of lots at depressed values, and the comparables they used were from a golf course community that's a big step down from CH. Clearly, no one in CH can hope to sell their homes even if they wanted to, or even refinance.
My options are to find a pile of cash to make up the difference (not going to happen); sit tight; buy a house somewhere else and renovate (not my dream, for sure); or take my project to another location where the appraisal will support the building cost.
In August I took a trip south and looked at communities in Beaufort, SC, where Jane lives, then spent a couple of days in St. Simons Island, where Steve urged me to focus. We spent a few hours driving through various communities, looking at marsh-front lots and getting a feel for the different areas. He feels that if I can find a well-priced piece of land (maybe bank-owned), we should be able to generate an appraisal at the level I need it to be.
I left with the name of a real estate broker, whom I contacted when I got home. He's keeping an eye out for lots, and I told him I'd like to rent a house for maybe a month after the first of the year and spend the time looking at virtually everything that's available, getting a feel for island living, and meeting a bunch of people (with help from my friends Russell and Cindy).
This is a setback, for sure, but I'm not giving up. I have put my heart into this beautiful home that Jane has designed, and am not ready to relegate the plans to an expensive coffee table artifact representing what might have been. In the meantime, nothing's going to happen for a good while.
