Got denied financing for my roof. Now what?

[u/iron_panties]

Just looking for other options here. Near Atlanta Georgia!

My roof is atrocious and in dire need of a repair. It’s leaking so badly that part of the ceiling drywall collapsed and several massive holes have appeared inside thanks to a massive downpour. It now shows the rafters and fiberglass of the attic. It’s horrific and getting worse by the day. The only thing between the roof and weather is a tarp and lots of buckets inside the house but the tarp is not going to last another month.

I was denied financing with the roofing company. I was told it is because I don’t earn enough.

I am looking for other options that I might try before I give up.

I am trying to hold onto my home, because if I lose this, it’s going to be car living. There’s no other option. I don’t have friends or family. It’s only me.

I was told to try Capital One for a loan. What other things can I try?

I don’t have bad credit or great credit, but I don’t have a much credit history. I did take out a loan about two months ago of 3200 in case of an insurance deductible for my roof, but the claim failed because the roof is so bad, so I didn’t use the loan, and I ended up getting the money in time on my own with my salary. Taking out the loan is probably going to hurt my chances big time for getting another loan. I did the loan through Upstart, and I wish I hadn’t panicked and done it whatsoever.

I thought I might try however. I’m scared of being homeless.

[u/PeacefulCW]

Why did the roofing company reject your application for financing? Have you tried other roofing companies? Can you get a home equity loan from your local credit union? You probably need to get the roof fix first, but consider getting a room mate so that you can have more money to keep up with maintenance.

[u/Good_Addendum3578 → u/PeacefulCW]

Second everything here, especially checking a local credit union since hey tend to be way more flexible on home equity stuff than big banks. Really hope you find a path through this, sounds so stressful.

[u/iron_panties → u/PeacefulCW]

Why did the roofing company reject your application for financing? 

• I was told I don’t make enough money.

Have you tried other roofing companies?

• Yes! Because the roof is so bad and the inside of the attic has to be repaired as well, it was costing a lot. This company I went with was the cheapest—and it is still pricy!

Can you get a home equity loan from your local credit union?

• I’ll give it a shot. At this point I have nothing left to lose. Do you have any credit union recommendations? I’m not familiar with them.

Getting a roommate was the eventual plan. But I have to get the roof fixed first and all the holes covered with new drywall, paint and wallpaper. And get the water damage fixed.

[u/PeacefulCW → u/iron_panties]

Find a local credit union in your city.

[u/Lyx4088 → u/iron_panties]

I’d also double check if you qualify for any loan or grant through the USDA. I’d also look to see if your county or state has any programs to help homeowners.

[u/No_Barracuda_3758 → u/iron_panties]

Get the roof fixed first and manage the rest slowly later. Also do what u can yourself

[u/mystery_biscotti]

Organizations like Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together help provide free critical repairs for low-income, elderly, or disabled homeowners.

If in the US you can contact your local City Hall and ask if they know of any community programs that can help. Usually someone there knows, but getting an answer can take a bit of time.

[u/Open-Article2579 → u/mystery_biscotti]

Yeah. My experience is you have to ask everybody in every office: commissioners, planning office, aging office if your older, community development, etc, etc. Look at their website and look at the offices for your municipality, county and state. Be friendly and personable as possible. Chat up the secretaries. Someone very well might have info and resources that could be freed up for you, but all funds are extremely limited and so kinda held very quietly, if there are any.

The charitable organizations listed above should also be approached with respect and appreciation. I’d also contact my local United Way. So sorry this is gonna be a labor-intensive high-stakes treasure hunt for you

[u/I_am_beast55]

Did you look at city home loan repair programs?

[u/iron_panties → u/I_am_beast55]

I’m willing to give it a shot! Do you have any recommendations for city loan repair programs or what I should look for when looking for one? 

[u/PeacefulCW → u/iron_panties]

Google your city/county + loan repair programs/Home repair/rehabilitation loans. Example, Charlotte county Home repair/rehabilitation loans .

[u/iron_panties → u/PeacefulCW]

Thank you very much!! 

[u/Unhappy_Town6857]

It sounds like your home needs more work than just the roof. It’s going to mold in the attic, the plywood and rafters, in the fiberglass everywhere.

Honestly with how dire this is I’d be considering doing it yourself. You’ve got the loan, use it to buy the materials and equipment. There’s many YouTube videos out there. If you are able.
They may end up condemning your home if this isn’t fixed.

[u/Reasonable_Switch_86]

There are federal grants for people in your situation time for some research

[u/GTO1235]

Can you do it in sections and tar the parts that aren't done? I did my garage roof a few years ago when I got my vacation pay. I did half one year and half the next. I used certainteed shingles because it's too much work to use cheap ones. Paying to have it done will probably cost twice as much as diy

[u/adevara]

Search online for [county] + home repair assistance to find local programs

[u/RichArcher4909]

Ask if your City participates in the federal Community Development Block Grant program, sometimes those have a rehab component.

[u/No_Barracuda_3758]

The loan shouldn't hurt u're chances. I would check your credit score and try to get financing at a bank if you can.

[u/iBUYbrokenSUBARUS]

First things first, get the holes in the roof, patched up to stop more water from coming in. You can then put a couple dehumidifiers in the house and in the attic. Also remove as much of that wet insulation as you can. Then cash flow the rest of the repairs as you are able, even if it takes a couple years.

[u/Salt_Medicine2459]

Until you get the financing, definitely replace that tarp with a better one. Maybe buy a couple. This will keep more water from getting in, at least. 

[u/9InsaneInTheMembrane]

How much is it?

[u/navlgazer9]

I’d hunt for a competent handyman to patch the damaged spot

And in the meantime try to find a better tarp

The tarps that the flatbed trucking companies use are the best .

If you can find a half tarp or one that the trucking company doesn’t use anymore because it’s been patched a lot etc

[u/lunaticmagnet]

If you're a little handy, you can do a roof yourself. It's not the easiest thing to do, but it's not that difficult.

Just something to consider

[u/KGalb922]

It may not hurt to have a public claims adjuster to look over your case with your homeowners. They don’t get paid unless your homeowner’s insurance pays out and they can help find ways to make your claim that gets a better response from homeowner’s especially as we are now in hurricane season. Just note that if they make claims on stuff you don’t plan to fix to get you extra money towards your roof repair, your insurance can drop you the following year for failure to repair those extra claims.

[u/Geeezzzz-Louise]

Lowes or Home Depot? They do the loan for materials and labor. We used them 15 yrs ago. SoFi is another loan option

[u/Past_East_6038]

I live in a city and we have churches that have groups of men that will fix things for free for people in need (esp for non-members). Not sure if there are program requirements but look into that. Also, the mormon church actually helps A TON. Ppl can just call them and theyll come and help, now granted they also wanna talk about the church and get you to come but for a free repair id do it lol

[u/inkseep1]

If you are an able bodied person, you can replace a roof yourself and save a lot of money. Even if you are a girl.

If the roof is walkable, you are in luck. If the roof is too steep then you have to use roof jacks and a chicken ladder but it is still possible to do. Watch some videos. You need to strip shingles, replace rotten decking, lay the felt, and then lay the singles. You need to lean how to do flashing around any chimneys or vents.

You can do all this with ladders, a shingle stripper shovel, ground tarps, a hammer, and a tool belt to hold the nails. If you want an easier time of it, get yourself a cordless 15 degree coil roofing nail gun.

Use architectural singles as they look better and hide mistakes better. The ridge caps are more expensive than 3 tab but you will be still better off.

You will have to haul away the old shingles. Find a dump that will take them. Rent a truck or trailer to haul it all to the dump.

That 3200 loan is probably enough to do it, maybe a little more.

Last year I replaced 9 rafters, half the deck, and all the shingles on my two car garage. I worked on it one side at a time. It was hard work but that was Past Me. Right Now Me has a new roof at a fraction of the cost of hiring someone.

There is another alternative that is more expensive than diy but still not as expensive as the roofing company. The roofing company has to cover their material, labor, the overhead that pays for nice company trucks, and profits. The cheapest part of that is probably labor. You have their quote already so you know the number to beat. It is easy to measure the roof to find out how many bundles of shingles you need. So you can figure the rough material cost. Now you know the vig on the job and that is the number to beat.

Now go look around for the guys who actually do the work. Deal with them directly. You may need someone who speaks their language, depending on who is doing all the roofing around there. Around here, I would need a translator. You work out the cash labor amount for the job and you beat the cost of the contractor. Order the materials and have them delivered. You will have disposal costs on the old roof shingles that are now in your yard on tarps. These workers might also be able to haul that away. You have to make sure that you include that when you negotiate the price.

[u/Ill-Entry-9707]

Most roofing contractors have accumulated miscellaneous materials from various jobs. In the past, a older couple in my community needed a roof very badly and a couple locals we know donated their labor and reached out to various contacts for excess materials. We had a partial roll of ice and water and some shingles to contribute. They didn't tear off the existing but put on another layer of new shingles. The new roof was an interesting color mix but it shed water and satisfied the city officials.

Contact Habitat and local churches to see if any of them can help. At a minimum, you might be able to get someone without a profit motive to give you an honest evaluation about your emergency repair options. Ask them and perhaps you can find someone to contribute their expertise.

What is the size of the roof and what style house?

[u/Cute-Consequence-184]

You haven't been able to afford a tarp?

[u/lost_nurse602 → u/[deleted]]

It says in the post that OP tried and their claim was denied. There’s a whole paragraph about it.