Last week we shared important details about the advantages of using a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) to help finance your home remodeling project.  As we explained originally in this "How To Pay for Your Brand New Bathroom" article from March 2019, HELOCs are a common financing option for home owners with positive home equity.  Another popular option we've identified is unsecured financing, also known as a signature loan, and that brings us to today's exciting news to share for our future clients! 

Our entire team at Diamond Bath is proud to announce a new partnership with a nationally recognized leader in personal finance, Rocket Loans!  You may have seen their advertisements on TV, or within your favorite publications, and you may even have their app on your smartphone, but we are excited at how easy this new partner makes it for our clients to secure the funding needed for professional home remodeling projects.  If you've just purchased your home within the past year or two, you may not have positive equity yet for a HELOC, and tapping high interest rate credit cards may not make sound financial sense.  For those with good credit scores, a Rocket Loan, paid over the course of five years could actually save you money versus your credit card.  Here's a helpful comparison, right from their website, for a $10,000 loan:

While all homeowners dream about the improvements they want to make to their home in the future, frequently tight budgets and overloaded credit cards prevent those dreams from becoming realities.  Back in March we wrote an article called, "How to Pay for Your Brand New Bathroom" which has become one of our most read blog posts.  While we touched on Home Equity Lines of Credit - HELOCs briefly, over the past several months our Diamond Bath team has received more questions about this common method for financing home improvements.  To help address some of the most common questions we receive, we want to provide a brief introduction to HELOC, your Home Equity Line of Credit. 

1. What is Home Equity?: At the most basic level, home equity is the positive difference between what the value of your home is versus what is owed.  If your home is appraised at $200,000 and your mortgage balance is $100,000, you have approximately $100,000 in available equity.  According to a HuffPo article released this week titled, The Best and Worst Ways to Use Home Equity, last year Americans had $14.4 Trillion dollars in untapped home equity in 2018.  

2. What is a Line of Credit?: Lines of credit are most commonly extended by a bank, credit union or other financial institution that enable the recipient to draw funds as needed within a given maximum amount. Lines of credit can be unsecured with simply a signature or secured with some tangible assets (house, car, business, etc.).   

3. What is a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)?: If you have positive equity in your home, you can leverage that equity by either taking a second mortgage for fixed period of time (also known as a home equity loan) or by establishing a HELOC. A Home Equity Line of Credit allows you to borrow and payback repeatedly, much like a credit card.  Many HELOC actually provide debt cards and checks that can be used for payment, but with interest rates significantly below what most unsecured credit cards would charge.  Even better, according to this Wall Street Journal article, interest on your loan is tax deductible up to $100,000. 

As mentioned in the recent HuffPo article above, one of the best uses for HELOCs are high value home remodeling projects!  So check with your bank or financial adviser about establishing a HELOC to leverage your positive home equityand then Contact our Diamond Bath team in Crystal Lake to discuss the details of your dream bathroom!

One of the most popular stories we've ever posted here on our website or to our Facebook page was last month's story about our Diamond Bath team winning the Chrysalis Award, amongst dozens of other professional remodelers, in 10 other states, for a project less than $50,000.  While we are still overwhelmed by the award, we really felt to honor the definition of "Chrysalis" - a transitional state - we felt it might be helpful to show both the before photos (below) and the new photo gallery page we created to showcase this special bathroom in Cary, Illinois. 

After you review these "Before" photos below, CLICK HERE to be taken to a special unpublished Gallery we've created for this award winning remodeling project!  And when it's time for a remarkable transformation in your home, contact the Diamond Bath team! 

Just before Memorial Day weekend, we shared the good news: Diamond Bath Received Three Award Nominations for Professional Remodeling.  Our nominations covered a 10 state region within the United States, and our project submissions were across three different bathroom remodeling budget levels.  Earlier this month we received the good news from the team at Chrysalis Awards: 

Diamond Bath LLC, Remodelers of Crystal Lake, Illinois Won the 2019 Regional Award for Bath Remodels Under $50,000!​

Being a professional remodeling company, it's easy to get caught up in the latest color and design trends that might come out of the east or west coasts. Luckily, we spend each work day collaborating with Illinois homeowners who help provide the constant realities of what residents really want.  So when we see an article from Elle Decor, we might be a little cautious about their 15 bathroom "Trends to Keep on Your Radar".  But among the 15, there were a few that we felt were truly strong. 

Here are our Top Three Bathroom Trends from this Elle Decor article:

Stay Bold and Tiny: Number one on their list was all about making big impressions even in small spaces. A few months back we posted this article talking about the boom in half bathrooms we've seen lately (also called powder rooms). While we are certainly a bit biased, we believe this project we completed at the start of the year in Johnsburg is a great combination of both trends, a bold powder room. 

Stay Exposed: We are not suggesting a window in your shower, but we are talking about your pipes. Number four on the Elle list details the trend we've seen in the past 24 months or so. Exposed shower plumbing (as shown below) is ideal for bathrooms that might feature subway tile, or modern marble, or even for those trying to accomplish the spa-like atmosphere that's been so popular in master suites lately. 
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Stay Neutral: While a suggestion for a neutral color palette might seem to conflict with the "bold" direction suggested above, we believe both trends are feasible.  In  the photo below, our recently completed project in Crystal Lake shows a classic look, that is both modern and timeless.  It's also highly appealing to potential home buyers, should that be something being considered in the future. 

When you are ready to share your design ideas and discuss your dream bathroom, our team is ready to talk! Contact us today or stop by our Client Selection Center in Crystal Lake this week!