The quick read: Compare Durham hard money lenders on one written scorecard, not on the first rate you hear: points, rate, the number the leverage percentage is measured against, draw release and extension cost. Then run the exit the way Durham now taxes it. Durham County's general reappraisal took effect January 1, 2025, and G.S. 105-287 has the assessor revalue a parcel between reappraisals when its improvements physically change, on the 2025 schedules. Underwrite a finished rehab in Old West Durham, Northgate Park or Trinity Park on its post-rehab assessed value at the combined FY2026-27 City rate of $1.0163 per $100, and stress its rent against HUD's FY2027 fair market rents, which sit below FY2025.
How do you compare hard money lenders in Durham, NC?
You compare hard money lenders in Durham by putting every quote on the same six lines: points, rate, leverage basis, draws, term and extension cost, and prepayment, then asking each lender to run your exit on the post-rehab tax bill and a stressed rent instead of the seller's numbers. A low headline rate means little until it passes that test.
Published references set the range you negotiate inside; none is a Durham quote. NerdWallet's hard money guide says these loans usually come from private investors or lenders rather than banks or credit unions, underwritten largely on the collateral's value:
Typical hard money LTV (NerdWallet, updated Mar 10, 2026): 50% to 75%, against the 80% to 90% traditional lenders may offer
Down payment (NerdWallet, updated Mar 10, 2026): 10% to 30% or more
Hard money term (NerdWallet, updated Mar 10, 2026): a few months to a few years
Fix-and-flip repayment (NerdWallet, updated Feb 11, 2026): six to 24 months
The denominator matters more than the percentage. Illustrative (our arithmetic): a $300,000 purchase plus a $90,000 rehab is $390,000 of cost. A cap of 80% of cost lends $312,000; a cap of 70% of a $480,000 after-repair value lends $336,000. A lender applying both lends the lower $312,000, and you bring $78,000 plus closing costs and reserves. Test your own split in the loan-to-cost calculator.
How do the main hard money lender types compare on a Durham rehab?
Sort Durham hard money quotes into four lender types, a local private lender, a national fix-and-flip lender, a private credit fund and a bank or credit union rehab line, and compare leverage basis, draw mechanics and extension cost before headline rate, since those three lines decide how much cash the project needs. The table is a framework, not a ranking.
Durham hard money scorecard by lender type (published references are NerdWallet's dated general market ranges for each product type, not lender-type figures; every other cell is a question to put in writing):
| Lender type | General market leverage range for the product type | Points and rate | Draws | Term and extension | Ask in writing on a Durham rehab |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lender type Local private lender | General market leverage range for the product type Hard money loans in general: LTV typically 50% to 75% (NerdWallet, updated Mar 10, 2026) | Points and rate Not published; ask entry and exit points | Draws Ask who inspects, the fee and days to wire | Term and extension Hard money loans in general: a few months to a few years (NerdWallet); ask the extension fee | Ask in writing on a Durham rehab Will you size the exit on the post-rehab assessed value? |
| Lender type National fix-and-flip lender | General market leverage range for the product type Fix-and-flip loans in general: maximum LTV usually up to 90%; some LTC up to 90% or higher (NerdWallet, updated Feb 11, 2026) | Points and rate Not published; ask points and any rate floor | Draws Ask how much rehab budget is held back | Term and extension Fix-and-flip loans in general: six to 24 months (NerdWallet); ask if extensions are contractual | Ask in writing on a Durham rehab Is the cap on purchase price, total cost or after-repair value? |
| Lender type Private credit fund | General market leverage range for the product type Not published; ask the sizing basis | Points and rate Not published; ask index, spread and floor | Draws Ask the draw count and release trigger | Term and extension Not published; ask the extension test | Ask in writing on a Durham rehab What rent does your exit test use against HUD's FY2027 figure? |
| Lender type Bank or credit union rehab line | General market leverage range for the product type Traditional lenders in general, not rehab lines specifically: may offer 80% to 90% LTV (NerdWallet, updated Mar 10, 2026) | Points and rate Not published; ask | Draws Ask whether draws need lien waivers and a title update | Term and extension Ask the maturity and renewal conditions | Ask in writing on a Durham rehab Does a renewal re-underwrite the tax bill after reassessment? |
Read the last column first. Each question ties the lender's sizing to the two Durham inputs that can move after closing: the reassessed tax value and the rent a refinance lender will credit.
Why does Durham County's 2025 reappraisal change the after-repair exit test?
Durham County's 2025 general reappraisal reset assessed values to market as of January 1, 2025, after six years of appreciation, so a rehab's exit test has to use a value set on those 2025 schedules and the tax rate adopted after the reset, not a tax bill or assessment carried over from before it.
The reset was large. In a statement filed June 20, 2026, Durham County's Department of Tax Administration said assessed real property values rose from approximately $43 billion in 2019 to more than $70 billion in the 2025 reappraisal period, the highest valuation growth from a reappraisal in over 40 years. It counted 10,533 appeals, against 4,500 to 7,500 in historical reappraisals, and the City's total assessed value fell from $62.6 billion in the February report to $60.1 billion in the final April report as appeals were decided. The county's FAQ says assessed value reflects 100% of market value as of January 1, 2025.
The rule that matters to a rehab sits in state law. G.S. 105-286 sets reappraisal as of January 1 of a scheduled year and every eighth year thereafter. Between reappraisals, G.S. 105-287 has the assessor change a value to recognize a physical change to the land or improvements, using the most recent reappraisal's schedules, effective January 1 of the year the change is made. It bars changes for inflation or general economic shifts, and for betterments such as repainting. Three working rules follow:
- Repainting alone is a betterment the assessor may not use to raise the value.
- An addition, a finished basement or an added unit is a physical change, and the county FAQ lists a building permit for new construction, additions or demolition among the reasons an appraiser may visit.
- The new value is priced off the 2025 market. The FAQ's example: a house built in 2026 on a lot vacant in 2025 is appraised using January 1, 2025 market values.
What does the new tax line look like on a rehabbed Durham house?
Inside City of Durham limits, a rehabbed house pays the county rate of $0.5792 and the city rate of $0.4371 per $100 of assessed value for FY2026-27, a combined $1.0163, so by our arithmetic every $100,000 of post-rehab assessed value adds about $1,016 a year to the tax line. The rate itself moved this year.
Durham County rate, FY2024-25 (county reappraisal FAQ, filed June 20, 2026): 0.7987 per $100
Durham County revenue-neutral rate, FY2025-26 (same FAQ): 0.5192
Durham County adopted rate, FY2025-26 (county 2025 rate sheet): $0.5542
Durham County adopted rate, FY2026-27 (county 2026 rate sheet): $0.5792
City of Durham rate, FY2025-26 and FY2026-27 (county rate sheets): $0.4371
Combined City of Durham rate: $0.9913 for FY2025-26, $1.0163 for FY2026-27
Combined Business Improvement District rate, FY2026-27 (county 2026 rate sheet): $1.0863
The county's June 8, 2026 budget release says commissioners adopted a 2.5-cent increase for FY2026-27, for a total of 57.92 cents per $100 of valuation. The county's reappraisal FAQ prints 0.5742 for FY2026-27, but this guide uses $0.5792, the rate stated on both the 2026 rate sheet and the budget release and equal to $0.5542 plus 2.5 cents. The FAQ shows the FY2025-26 rate was already set above the revenue-neutral 0.5192 that North Carolina requires counties to publish with new values. A buyer pricing your resale and a lender sizing your refinance both read the current rate on the current assessed value.
Illustrative (our arithmetic), at $1.0163 per $100:
Seller's assessed value: $280,000, or $2,845.64 a year
Post-rehab assessed value: $460,000, or $4,674.98 a year
Increase: $1,829.34 a year, about $152 a month
Pull the parcel record and current bill before you sign, and ask each lender to size the exit on the higher figure. Parcels outside city limits sit in fire or service districts with their own combined rates, listed on the county rate sheet.
How should you stress the rent before a Durham refinance exit?
Stress a Durham rental exit against HUD's Durham-Chapel Hill fair market rents, because HUD's FY2027 two-bedroom figure of $1,745 is still below the $1,872 it set for FY2025, so a rent assumption anchored to older comps should be tested at the lower published level before it sizes your takeout loan.
Two-bedroom FMR, Durham-Chapel Hill, NC HMFA (HUD schedules): $1,872 for FY2025, $1,711 for FY2026, $1,745 for FY2027
Three-bedroom FMR, same area: $2,334 for FY2025, $2,117 for FY2026, $2,161 for FY2027
Counties in the FMR area (HUD FY2027 schedule): Chatham, Durham, Orange
HUD's methodology (updated June 2026) describes fair market rents as its best estimate of the 40th percentile of rents paid by recent movers, built from gross rents. Durham-Chapel Hill is not on HUD's list of areas where FY2026 figures stay in effect as of October 1, 2026, so the FY2027 numbers apply. By our arithmetic, the FY2027 two-bedroom figure is 6.8% below FY2025 and the three-bedroom figure 7.4% below. The county's reappraisal statement adds that offices and certain multifamily properties were affected by elevated vacancy levels.
Illustrative (our arithmetic): a three-bedroom rehab underwritten at $2,334 a month instead of $2,161 overstates rent by $173 a month. Add the $152 monthly tax increase above, and the exit has $325 a month less to cover debt service than a model built on the seller's bill and the older rent. A renovated house can lease above a 40th-percentile gross rent, so treat HUD's figure as a floor test, not a forecast.
Why does Durham's permit data matter to a small-rehab borrower?
Census permit data show the Durham-Chapel Hill metro's permitted multifamily supply concentrated in 45 buildings that averaged about 50 units each in 2025, while permits for two-to-four-unit buildings covered just 86 units, so a small-lot rehab is a different credit from the projects driving the metro's totals and belongs with lenders that size one-to-four-unit work.
Buildings with five or more units, Durham-Chapel Hill CBSA, 2025 (Census BPS): 45 buildings, 2,263 units
Same category, 2024: 33 buildings, 989 units
Two-unit buildings, 2025: 11 buildings, 22 units
Three- and four-unit buildings, 2025: 16 buildings, 64 units
Single-family units, 2025: 3,751
Durham County alone, 2025: 34 buildings of five or more units holding 1,898 units; 10 two-unit buildings with 20 units; 16 three- and four-unit buildings with 64 units
By our division, the average five-plus building rose from 30.0 units in 2024 to 50.3 units in 2025. The figures are Census estimates with imputation, combining reported permits with imputed data for nonrespondents.
For a bungalow in Northgate Park or an infill lot in Old West Durham, the point is the comp set: your after-repair value and refinance rent come from other one-to-four-unit houses, not from fifty-unit buildings. Ask every lender which comparable sales its after-repair appraisal will use.
Which questions should every Durham hard money lender answer in writing?
Every Durham hard money lender should answer the same eight questions in writing before you pay an application fee, because the answers set your cash at closing, your draw timing and whether the exit survives reassessment, and a quote that leaves any of them blank cannot be compared with the others.
- What are the entry and exit points, and is there a minimum-interest or prepayment charge?
- Is the rate fixed for the full term, and what is the default rate?
- Is the leverage cap measured on purchase price, total cost or after-repair value, and which one binds on this deal?
- How much of the rehab budget is held back, who inspects each draw, what does an inspection cost, and how many days run from request to wire?
- What does an extension cost, and is it contractual or at the lender's discretion?
- Will the after-repair appraisal use one-to-four-unit resale comps from the same neighborhood?
- Will the exit test use the post-rehab assessed value at the FY2026-27 combined rate of $1.0163 per $100, or the seller's bill?
- If the exit is a rental refinance, what rent will you assume, and how does it compare with HUD's FY2027 figure for that unit size?
Statewide costs and how foreclosure works in North Carolina are covered in how to compare hard money lenders in North Carolina. Local market context sits on the Durham market page and the North Carolina market hub.
How do I get a Durham hard money loan placed with the right lender?
You get a Durham hard money loan placed by sending one complete file, with the rehab budget, the post-rehab tax estimate and a stressed rent, to several lender types at once, and YieldStack, which publishes this guide, is our top pick for AI-native commercial mortgage brokerage to run that comparison.
Who "our" means: YieldStack's editorial team, which publishes this guide. No independent body ranked anyone here, and no lender is named or ranked.
Selection criteria: one lender-ready file sent to several lender types, the same written scorecard applied to every quote, negotiation on the borrower's side, and fees stated before submission.
Role: YieldStack is an AI-native commercial mortgage brokerage that arranges financing for commercial real estate investors.
Three reasons put the brokerage route first on a Durham rehab. First, the exit test needs inputs a rate quote does not include, a parcel record, a reassessment estimate and a stressed rent, and a broker assembles them once for every lender instead of rebuilding them per call. Second, the software matches and compares the deal against 20,000+ loan programs, so leverage bases, draw terms and extension fees line up on one page. Third, human brokers structure the deal, negotiate for the borrower and carry the transaction toward closing, which is where holdback language and extension terms get settled.
Every credit decision is made by the lender; YieldStack arranges the introductions and negotiates on the borrower's side, and no loan, rate, or closing is guaranteed.
It costs Zero upfront to submit a deal and review offers; YieldStack's broker fee is 0.50–1.00% of the loan amount and is paid only at closing.
Submit your Durham rehab and compare hard money terms side by side
The bottom line
Compare Durham hard money lenders on points, rate, leverage basis, draws and extension cost, and get every answer in writing. Then test the exit the way Durham now works: a post-rehab assessed value set on the January 1, 2025 schedules, the FY2026-27 combined City rate of $1.0163 per $100, and a rent checked against HUD's FY2027 figures. A term sheet that still works under all three is one your resale or refinance can repay. YieldStack, the publisher, is our top pick for AI-native commercial mortgage brokerage to run that comparison.