Financing
Construction money works differently. Here is exactly how.
Almost nobody one-click buys a new build — and that's fine. A construction-to-permanent loan funds your house in stages while it goes up, then becomes an ordinary mortgage the day you move in. One closing, one rate, five inspected draws. This page walks through all of it, calculators included.
01 — Construction-to-perm
One loan that builds the house, then becomes your mortgage
A traditional mortgage funds a house that already exists. A construction-to-permanent loan funds one that doesn't yet — releasing money in stages as work passes inspection, then converting to a standard 15- or 30-year mortgage when you get the keys. You close once, lock your rate once, and pay interest only on what has actually been drawn.
Construction-to-permHow Ashwrks builds are financed
Traditional mortgageFor homes that already exist
What it funds
Construction-to-perm
A house that doesn't exist yet — land, site work, and construction, released in stages.
Traditional mortgage
A finished house, in one lump sum at closing.
Closings
Construction-to-perm
One. You qualify once, lock a rate before ground breaks, and the loan converts automatically at completion.
Traditional mortgage
One — but only after the home exists. It can't pay for the build itself.
Payments during the build
Construction-to-perm
Interest-only, and only on the drawn balance — small at foundation, larger by drywall.
Traditional mortgage
Full principal & interest from month one.
Oversight
Construction-to-perm
Each draw funds only after the work it pays for passes a third-party inspection.
Traditional mortgage
A single appraisal before closing; no construction oversight.
At move-in
Construction-to-perm
Converts to a standard 15- or 30-year fixed. Same lender, no second closing, no second set of fees.
Traditional mortgage
Nothing changes — it started as the permanent loan.
The draw schedule
Five milestones, five inspections, five releases of money. Your balance — and your interest-only payment — steps up as the house does. Early months are cheap; the last stretch, with the full balance drawn, is the peak.
Draw schedule diagram: five draws across the build, each funded after a passed inspection. Foundation brings the drawn balance to 15 percent of the loan, framing to 35 percent, mechanicals to 60 percent, drywall to 85 percent, and final completion to 100 percent. Interest accrues only on the drawn balance, so interest-only payments start small and step up as the house progresses.
02 — Construction loan estimator
Run your numbers
Live math on the structure above: what you'd put down, what the build phase costs in interest, and the payment your loan converts to. Rates here are illustrative — your lender's quote is the real one, and your project price locks at contract.
Land + site work + build, in dollars. Estimate — locks at contract.
20% is typical for construction-to-perm. Land you already own can count as equity.
Illustrative. Your lender sets the actual rate and locks it at your single closing.
Loan amount
$548,000
Down payment
$137,000
Avg interest-only / mo
$1,819
During the build — starts lower, steps up with each draw.
Peak interest-only / mo
$3,083
Final months, full balance drawn.
Monthly P&I after conversion
$3,554
30-year fixed at 6.75% — principal and interest only; taxes and insurance are on top.
Construction-phase interest
$18,187
Total across a 10-month build.
| Draw | Drawn | Balance | Interest / mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01Foundation | 15% | $82,200 | $462 |
| 02Framing | 35% | $191,800 | $1,079 |
| 03Mechanicals | 60% | $328,800 | $1,850 |
| 04Drywall | 85% | $465,800 | $2,620 |
| 05Final | 100% | $548,000 | $3,083 |
| Total construction-phase interest | $18,187 | ||
03 — Affordability
What can you comfortably build?
A quick sizing pass at a conservative 36% debt-to-income ceiling, using the same rate and term you set in the estimator above. It answers one question honestly: what total project budget — land, site work, and build — fits your month?
Household income before taxes, in dollars.
Car loans, student loans, credit card minimums — not rent.
Savings you'd put in. If you own your land, its equity adds on top.
Using the 6.75% rate and 30-year term from the estimator above — adjust them there and this updates.
Max monthly housing at 36% DTI
$3,110
36% of gross income, minus your existing debt payments.
Your comfortable Ashwrks budget
$547.6K – $619.5K
The low end reserves part of your housing budget for property taxes and insurance; the high end spends all of it on principal and interest. Land, site work, and build — total.
This is a sizing tool, not an approval. Lender pre-qualification is the real gate — credit, reserves, and appraisal all matter. We introduce you to construction lenders in your metro when you pre-qualify below.
04 — Deposits & escrow
Where your money sits, and when
Three checkpoints between first interest and finished house. Each one is sized to the risk you can actually see at that moment — and the big money never sits with us.
$2,500
Reservation
Holds your parcel while the feasibility study runs. Fully refundable until the study is complete — if the land fails, every dollar comes back.
5%
Design deposit
Funds design and engineering after feasibility clears. Credited toward your contract price at close — it's a head start, not an extra fee.
Lender-held
Construction draws
Build money sits with your lender, not with us. Each draw is released to Ashwrks only after the work it pays for passes inspection.
What happens on overruns
Every estimate carries a contingency band sized to the land state: tightest on finished lots, wider on partially developed land, widest on raw acreage until the feasibility study reports. That band is stated on your estimate, not hidden in it.
If a change is your call — an upgrade, a moved wall — it becomes a written change order, priced and signed before the work continues. If the miss is ours, the contingency absorbs it before we ever come back to you. Draws still only fund against inspected work either way.
05 — Lenders
We don't lend. We make you lendable.
Construction lending is regional by nature — appraisers, inspectors, and draw administrators all work in person. We maintain working relationships with regional construction lenders in every metro we build in, and we package your project the way their underwriters want to see it: feasibility study, fixed scope, draw schedule, one accountable builder.
Columbus · Cincinnati · Cleveland (waitlist)
What construction lenders typically look for
- Credit around 720 or better is the comfortable zone for construction terms; high 600s can work with compensating factors.
- 20% down is typical for construction-to-perm; some regional programs go lower with stronger reserves.
- Land equity counts — if you already own your lot, its appraised value can serve as some or all of your down payment.
- Steady, documentable income — construction underwriting usually reads two years of history.
Every lender sets its own terms. None of this is a guarantee of credit — pre-qualification below starts the real conversation.
06 — Pre-qualification
Four steps. Five minutes. No credit pull.
Tell us who you are, where you're building, and the budget you're sizing. We use it to make a lender introduction — and if you already own land, to schedule our full 40-point feasibility study on it ($1,500, credited in full at contract). Nothing here is binding; it starts the conversation.
What you'll need
- Ballpark budget and down payment source — no documents
- A metro and a rough timeline
- About five minutes
Lender pre-qualification is the real gate — this form gets you to it prepared, with your project already packaged for underwriting. Your draft autosaves in this browser as you type.
Step 1 of 4
- Contact
- Where
- Budget
- Review
How do we reach you?
Demo build — nothing is transmitted. Your answers autosave to this browser only.