Financing & Payment
Financing & Payment Options
We are a contractor, not a lender — so instead of a sales pitch, here is an honest explanation of how construction projects usually get paid for, what documentation lenders ask us for, and how phasing can make a project affordable without borrowing at all.
Straight talk
How Construction Projects Actually Get Paid For
Most contractor financing pages exist to push you toward a lender who pays the contractor a referral fee. We are not doing that. Beast Construction Inc does not originate loans, does not make credit decisions and does not earn anything from where you get your money. Our interest is narrower and simpler: that the project is funded before we start it, and that you are not surprised by a payment schedule.
Broadly, our clients fund work four ways. Cash or operating funds, which is the cheapest and most common on smaller scopes. Borrowing against home equity through a home equity loan, line of credit or cash-out refinance, which usually offers the best rates available to a homeowner. Unsecured home improvement or renovation lending through a bank, credit union or third-party consumer lender. Or, on commercial work, construction and permanent financing arranged by the owner or developer with a draw schedule and inspection process attached.
There is a fifth path that gets ignored: phasing the work. Not every project has to happen in one contract year, and a well-planned phase break costs almost nothing extra while a badly planned one wastes real money redoing work. We are happy to design a phase plan for your project.
What We Provide To Your Lender
Lenders and renovation loan programs generally want the same package, and we produce it as a matter of course rather than as a favor:
- A written scope of work describing what is and is not included
- An itemized estimate with allowances stated clearly
- A construction schedule with milestone dates
- A payment schedule tied to completed, verifiable milestones
- Certificates of insurance naming the lender or owner where requested
- W-9, business license information and references
- Lien waivers with each draw request
- Change order documentation signed before work proceeds
If your lender has its own forms, inspection requirements or draw process, tell us during estimating and we will build the schedule around it. Nothing slows a renovation loan down faster than a contractor who cannot produce paperwork on request.
Our Payment Structure
Payment terms are always written into the contract before you sign. A typical structure looks like a deposit at signing to cover permits, engineering and material ordering, progress payments at defined milestones such as site work complete, foundation complete, dried-in, or rough-ins approved, and final payment at substantial completion after the punch list is signed off. On smaller single-scope jobs such as a driveway or a slab, it may simply be a deposit and a completion payment.
What we will not do: ask for the majority of a contract in cash before work begins, bill for work that has not been performed, or hold your final punch list hostage to an unapproved change order.
Where Phasing Beats Borrowing
Some projects break cleanly into phases and some do not. Phasing works well when each phase leaves you with something usable and does not require undoing work later. Good examples: clearing and a gravel driveway now with asphalt in a later season; a post-frame shell now with the slab and interior finish later; site work and a foundation this year with the house next year; a deck now with a screened enclosure later; a drainage correction first and the patio afterward.
Phasing works badly when it means paying two mobilizations for work that could have been done in one trip, or when the second phase requires tearing out finished work. We will tell you which situation you are in.
Accepted payment
How You Can Pay Us
Simple, documented and traceable. Every payment is receipted and applied against the contract and change order log.
- Business and personal check
- ACH and bank transfer
- Cashier's check and wire for large draws
- Major credit cards where processing fees are disclosed
- Lender draw disbursements
- Insurance claim proceeds with mortgage endorsement handling
- Commercial purchase orders and net terms by agreement
- Government and institutional payment processes
Insurance claim work: for storm damage and covered losses we bill against the approved scope, handle supplements through your adjuster, and never ask you to waive or absorb your deductible. See roofing and exteriors for how we document claim damage.
Know Your Budget? Let's Match A Scope To It.
Tell us the number you are working with and we will tell you honestly what it buys, what it does not, and how to phase the rest.
Process
From Estimate To Final Payment
The financial side of a project should be as predictable as the construction side.
Free Written Estimate
We walk the site, define the scope and give you an itemized written estimate with allowances and exclusions stated.
Contract & Schedule
Scope, price, payment milestones, schedule and warranty terms go into a signed contract before any deposit is collected.
Deposit & Ordering
The deposit covers permits, engineering and material ordering. Long-lead items are secured before mobilization.
Progress Billing
Invoices are issued at completed milestones with photos and, where a lender is involved, inspection and lien waiver documentation.
Final Payment
After the punch list is complete and signed off, final payment is due and warranty documentation is handed over.
Value engineering
Cheaper Is Not Always Less
When a project comes in over budget, there are two ways to close the gap. One is to cut quality where it cannot be seen — thinner base, less reinforcement, no drainage, skipped waterproofing. That is how the cheapest bid usually gets cheap, and it is why the same driveway gets built twice.
The other way is to change what you are buying: a smaller footprint, a simpler roofline, a phased build, a different material with similar performance, gravel now and asphalt later, or your own labor on finish items. We will always take the second route with you, and we will tell you which line items are safe to trim and which are structural or drainage-related and should not be touched.
Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
Honest answers about paying for construction work.
Do you offer financing directly?
No. Beast Construction Inc is a contractor, not a lender. We do not originate loans, we do not receive a commission for steering you to a particular lender, and we do not make credit decisions. What we do is provide the documentation a lender or program needs - a written scope, a detailed estimate, and a payment schedule tied to completed milestones - and work within whatever draw process your financing requires.
What financing options do homeowners typically use?
Common paths include home equity loans and lines of credit, cash-out refinancing, renovation loan products, unsecured home improvement loans through banks and credit unions, contractor-arranged third-party consumer financing, and manufacturer or dealer programs on specific products. Availability, rates and terms depend entirely on your credit, equity and lender - which is why we encourage you to shop it rather than take a recommendation from your contractor.
How does a lender draw schedule work with your billing?
Most construction and renovation lenders release funds in draws after an inspection confirms a stage is complete. We structure our billing to match: a deposit or mobilization payment, progress billings tied to defined milestones such as foundation complete or rough-in complete, and final payment at substantial completion and punch list sign-off. We provide lien waivers with each draw when your lender requires them.
Can I phase a project instead of financing it?
Very often, yes, and it is the most underrated way to make a project affordable. Site work and a pad this fall, foundation and shell in spring, slab and finish later. A shop shell now, slab and interior next year. A driveway base and gravel now, asphalt when the budget allows. We will lay out a phasing plan that does not waste money doing something twice.
Do you require a deposit?
Typically yes on projects that require materials to be ordered, equipment mobilized or permits paid for. The amount is stated in the contract along with the full payment schedule before you sign anything. We do not ask for large cash payments up front on work that has not started, and we do not accept payment in a way that leaves you without a paper trail.
Get A Number You Can Take To A Lender
Call (833) BY-BEAST or (801) 407-9448, or request an estimate online. Free written estimates in Virginia, Florida, Utah, California and Wyoming.