Decatur is located in Morgan County, Alabama. It is a great place to invest in real estate as the second largest city in Morgan County, Alabama, and is nicknamed “The River City.” Decatur, Alabama is close to and neighbors Huntsville and is a cheap suburb with many big city, southern charm.
On Niche, Decatur, Alabama is rated as the third best place to live in Morgan County, with easy access to a wildlife refuge and low rent prices. Its average rent is $655 and the average home value in Decatur is $134,500. It is also one of the most diverse places to live in the state.
As a real estate investor, investing in Decatur is ideal due to high capitalization rates, low property taxes and affordable properties. A suburban area like Decatur is a terrific opportunity given its proximity to major cities like Huntsville as well. A rise in development in Decatur and a stable real estate market without major appreciations and declines will be a great real estate opportunity for all investors.
Hard money loans are a terrific way to fund fix and flips and generate long-term rental properties. They are loans to bypass low credit and traditional lenders like banks. Unlike traditional lenders, hard money lenders give fast closing speeds and give loans based on the value of the property rather than the borrowing history of the borrower.
However, hard money loans also have risks. They have high-interest rates and short repayment periods and can be difficult to pay off in an expedient manner. In the world of real estate investing, time is money, and hard money loans are a tool to gain leverage and get quickly approved.
Using hard money loans is a form of asset-based investing. Speed of approval is sometimes more important than other real estate metrics, including interest rates. Defaulting on a hard money loan is also very different from defaulting on a traditional loan. If you default on a hard money loan, the lender seizes the property as collateral instead of foreclosing the house.
Decatur, as a city in Alabama as a whole, cap rates are good and vacancy rates are low, so getting a hard money loan in the city is not difficult. Since Decatur is not a major market, it is not subject to steep barriers of entry like major cities.
However, there are also a variety of hard money lenders out there. Not every hard money lender is trustworthy, and some hard money lenders try to take advantage of new investors with exorbitant rates, origination fees, and closing costs. A bad hard money loan often sets back real estate investors’ portfolios.
We have a selective list of the most reputable hard money lenders in Decatur, Alabama, lenders you can trust.
