Consumers Digest - Home improvement loan for first time buyers?

Home improvement loan for first time buyers?

My fiance and I have found the exact home in KY we want to buy: on two acres surrounded by state forest and only twenty minutes from downtown! All this for less than $100,000. The problem? The home definitely needs some cosmetic work. And it's tiny. We are first time home buyers and have no equity. Is there any way we can buy this home and get say $30,000 in home improvement loans? We've been approved for almost $200,000 for a home loan. Yes, I realize it's not a good idea to buy a house for more than you can afford, hence the housing situation we are in now. The house is $80,000 and we want to take a separate home improvement loan for $30,000. We both have very good jobs and are more than capable of making these payments. What I want to know is if there is any possible way to get the $30,000 for home improvement. Our realtor doesn't know and our loan officer doesn't think so. Yes, I realize it's not a good idea to buy a house for more than you can afford, hence the housing situation our country is in now. The house is $80,000 and we want to take a separate home improvement loan for $30,000. We both have very good jobs and are more than capable of making these payments. What I want to know is if there is any possible way to get the $30,000 for home improvement. Our realtor doesn't know and our loan officer doesn't think so.

Public Comments

If you can't put at minimum 3% down, giving your equity, then do not borrow even more money until you can afford it. Being approved for 200K does NOT by any stretch mean you should go out and spen 200K on housing.
If the work is only "cosmetic", I would defer the work until a later date. In my experience, a home will tell you which projects are important.
If you can afford to pay it back...go for it. Are you using a realtor? They will be able to tell you your options. If it is an as-is sale or corporate owned, or foreclosed...probably not.
Just because you're "approved" for $200K doesn't mean they'll loan you $200K if the house is going to cost you less than $100K. The bank will loan you exactly the amount that it costs to purchase the house and no more. They don't loan extra to do repair work whether its essential work or cosmetic. Any repairs will have to come out of your savings (as will the closing costs, etc.) They approved you for the $200K so you can buy a house up to that price.
there is NO way you will get loans totalling more than the house is worth (80k) and chances are you will need down pmt cash of your own - the only way you can get a 30,000 HOE on that property is when you build up a lot of equity in the house - say 20 yrs from now
You can try to take out an additional home equity loan that is specifically for repairs. Some banks will approve you for a specific remodel job since it will raise the value of the home. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1525193/understanding_home_equity_lines_of.html