Cheektowaga is a town in Erie County and is a suburb of Buffalo. It is the second biggest suburb in Buffalo after Amherst, and Cheektowaga is known as home to the Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Empire State College, and Villa Maria College. It is named Cheektowaga because the name means “land of the crabapples” in the Seneca language.
Historically, the town developed from farming land to suburban housing after a World War II housing boom. Popular employers included the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, and hence Cheektowaga is known as a blue-collar town. It is also home to the Walden Gallaria, the largest mall in the Buffalo Niagara region.
According to Niche, Cheektowaga has a population just above 85,000 people. It is a town with a sparse suburban feel where most residents own their homes, and there is significant night life in Cheektowaga in restaurants and bars. Cheektowaga has a lot of green space, and it is home to both young professionals and retirees.
Cheektowaga has a median home value of $113,900 and a median rent of $843, which makes it an incredibly affordable place within New York. Right now, Cheektowaga is a seller’s market. It is a place where demand outpaces supply, and where homes are selling very fast. In a housing bubble, real estate investors are getting into bidding wars over prime real estate in Cheektowaga.
Hard money loans might be the best way to invest in real estate in Cheektowaga. Hard money loans are otherwise known as short-term bridge loans and last resort loans, but their primary benefit in a seller’s market like Cheektowaga is they can be approved very quickly. Hard money loans can be approved within a couple of days, whereas traditional mortgage loans often take a month or more to be approved.
Hard money loans can be approved so quickly because they’re based on the property and the after repair value of the property, not the financial standing of the applicant. Hard money loans still depend on credit score because most hard money lenders still have minimum credit score requirements of 600 to 620. But hard money loans use the property as collateral. If a borrower defaults on a mortgage, the bank initiates costly foreclosure proceedings. If a borrower defaults on a hard money loan, the lender takes on the property.
This is risky for hard money lenders. Hard money loans have more unforgiving rates than traditional mortgage loans. They have higher interest rates, shorter repayment periods and lower LTV ratios compared to traditional mortgage loans. Hard money loans have interest rates of 8–15%, repayment periods of more or less a year, and LTV ratios of 65–75%. By contrast, traditional mortgage loans have interest rates of just over 4%, repayment periods of approximately 30 years, and LTV ratios of approximately 80%.
It’s essential to trust only the best hard money lenders, since not every hard money lender is reliable. Some hard money lenders tack on extra fees like underwriting fees, closing costs, and origination fees. Other hard money lenders might not be the most transparent about these fees until signing. New investors in particular have to be careful because they may have difficulty finding hard money lenders who will invest in them (since most require a track record of successful investments) and they may have more unforgiving terms and rates.
At Hard Money Lenders IO, we have you covered. Here are the best hard money lenders in Cheektowaga for your real estate investment.
