The quick read: Compare Charleston hard money lenders on the same five lines — points, rate, purchase-and-rehab leverage, draw mechanics and extension fee — then test every quote against the Board of Architectural Review's calendar. Charleston's BAR reviews new construction, alterations and renovations visible from the public right-of-way in the city's historic districts, BAR-Large meets once a month and BAR-Small meets twice a month, and both run capped agendas. A renovation that needs BAR sign-off before work starts can miss a meeting cycle before the first draw is ever requested, so draw speed and the extension clause matter as much as the headline rate.
What should you compare first on a Charleston hard money term sheet?
The first comparison on any Charleston hard money term sheet is the all-in cost over your realistic hold — points plus interest plus draw and extension fees — measured against how much of the purchase price and the rehab budget the lender actually funds.
That matters because a low headline rate with thin rehab funding or a slow draw process can cost more than a higher rate with a lender who moves fast. Put every quote on the same worksheet, line for line.
Points: the origination charge as a percent of the loan, paid at closing
Rate: the note rate, and whether interest accrues on the full commitment or only on funds drawn
Purchase leverage: the loan as a share of purchase price or as-is value
Rehab funding: the share of the rehab budget financed, and any cap measured against after-repair value (ARV)
Draw mechanics: the inspection fee, who orders the inspector, and days from request to funding
Extension fee: the cost of each extension and the conditions attached to it
Published ranges are wide and general. NerdWallet's guide to hard money business loans (updated March 10, 2026) says hard money lenders "typically offer loan amounts with LTVs that range from 50% to 75%," and the Corporate Finance Institute (June 22, 2021) puts the typical loan at "65% to 75% of the collateral asset's value," repaid "within one to five years." Neither publishes a dated rate or points benchmark for Charleston, so treat any average you see quoted online as a vendor claim and compare the actual term sheets in front of you.
How do the four hard money lender types compare for a Charleston peninsula or Tri-County rehab?
This framework sorts Charleston-area purchase-and-rehab lenders into four types — local private lenders, national fix-and-flip lenders, debt funds and community-bank rehab lines — and compares how each prices the loan, funds rehab, inspects draws and prices extensions, because the peninsula's historic-district rules and the Tri-County region's newer subdivisions reward different lender strengths.
Use the scorecard below as an evaluation framework, not a ranking.
| Lender type (framework, not a ranking) | Points and rate | Purchase and rehab leverage (LTC / ARV) | Draw mechanics | Extension fee | Published, dated benchmark |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local private lender | Quoted per deal | Ask whether rehab is financed or must come from equity, and any ARV cap | Ask who inspects, who orders the inspection, and days from request to funding | Ask the cost and whether it's written into the note | No lender-type-specific dated benchmark found (general hard money ranges are in the section above) |
| National fix-and-flip lender | Quoted per deal | Ask for the purchase share, rehab share and ARV cap separately | Ask the third-party inspection fee and turnaround | Ask whether extensions are pre-agreed or discretionary | No lender-type-specific dated benchmark found (general hard money ranges are in the section above) |
| Debt fund | Quoted per deal | Ask whether leverage is set on cost, as-is value or ARV | Ask the rules for moving budget between line items, useful if a BAR finding adds scope | Ask about completion or value tests for extending | No dated public benchmark found |
| Community-bank rehab line | Quoted per relationship | Bank policy, under federal supervisory LTV limits | The bank's construction-draw process | Renewal through credit review | Supervisory loan-to-value limits, not typical terms (interagency guidelines, OCC copy at 12 CFR Part 34, Appendix A, 2025 edition): bank internal limits "should not exceed" 85% for 1- to 4-family construction, 80% for commercial and multifamily construction, 85% for improved property; the guidelines allow loan-by-loan exceptions, with commercial and multifamily exceptions held within 30% of total capital |
No dated public source we found states leverage, points or rates by lender type for Charleston, so the general NerdWallet and Corporate Finance Institute ranges stay in the section above rather than in a lender-type row. The "Quoted per deal" entries are deliberate: a number copied from a lender's own marketing is not a benchmark. For the statewide version of this scorecard, see how to compare hard money lenders in South Carolina; for the coastal sibling market, see how to compare hard money lenders in Myrtle Beach. What this Charleston page adds is the local test below: whether a quote survives the Board of Architectural Review's calendar.
Why does the Board of Architectural Review change a Charleston rehab schedule?
Charleston's Board of Architectural Review changes a rehab schedule because its two boards review new construction, alterations and renovations visible from the public right-of-way inside the city's historic districts, and a project that needs BAR sign-off before work starts can lose weeks waiting for the next meeting, agenda slot or resubmittal, well before the first rehab draw is ever requested.
The city's BAR page sets out jurisdiction, structure and cadence:
Jurisdiction: "the BAR reviews all new construction, alterations and renovations visible from the public right-of-way"
Demolition: "the BAR reviews all demolitions of buildings 50 years of age or older on any structures south of Mount Pleasant Street, and any demolitions (regardless of age) within the Old and Historic District," plus every structure on the Landmark Overlay Properties list
Two boards, capped agendas: "BAR-L agendas are capped at 8 items and BAR-S agendas are capped at 15 items"
Meeting cadence: BAR-Large meets the "2nd Wednesday of every month"; BAR-Small meets the "2nd and 4th Thursdays of every month," both at "4:30 p.m., 2 George Street, First Floor, Public Meeting Room 1403"
Filing deadline: applications are due "by NOON on the deadline date" ahead of each meeting
For a flipper, the practical read is this: a renovation inside the historic districts, visible from the street, needs a BAR slot before it starts, and BAR-Small's twice-a-month cadence and capped 15-item agenda, or BAR-Large's once-a-month cadence and capped 8-item agenda, set how long that can take if the agenda is full or the application misses the noon deadline. Confirm your parcel's district and board, and your project's agenda position, with the city before you set a draw schedule.
Which draw and extension terms matter most on a Charleston historic-district rehab?
On a Charleston rehab inside a historic district, the draw and extension terms often matter more than a small difference in rate, because a BAR delay, a resubmittal or a discovered condition behind a wall can push the renovation past its original schedule, and every month past maturity is priced by the extension clause rather than by the note rate.
Negotiate those clauses before you compare price.
Ask every lender the same five questions:
Draw inspection: who orders it, the fee per draw, and the days from request to funding
Budget reallocation: whether savings on one line can fund a BAR-driven material or design change on another
Interest on undrawn funds: whether you pay interest on the full commitment or only on funded dollars
Extension: the cost, the length, and whether it requires a new appraisal or a completion test
Exit test: whether the ARV the lender sizes to assumes the exterior materials and design the BAR will actually approve
A lender that funds draws quickly, allows reallocation into a BAR-required material swap and writes a priced extension into the note is protecting your exit, even if its rate is not the lowest on the table. A lender with a low rate and a discretionary extension can turn a two-month BAR resubmittal into a default notice.
What should a Charleston investor have ready before asking hard money lenders for terms?
A Charleston investor should have the purchase contract, a line-item rehab budget, the property's historic-district status and exterior scope, and, if work is visible from the street, a BAR submission or pre-application note ready, so every lender prices the same scope and the quotes stay comparable side by side.
Property: address, parcel (TMS) number, year built and whether it sits inside a historic district or on the Landmark Overlay Properties list
BAR status: whether exterior work is visible from the public right-of-way, which board has jurisdiction, and the next filing deadline
Rehab: line-item budget, contractor bid and timeline, with a contingency for BAR-driven material or design changes
Draw plan: inspection process, who orders it and the lender's days-to-fund
Exit: sale comps and the financing your target buyer will use, or a refinance plan
The brokerage route is one option. Our top pick for AI-assisted commercial mortgage brokerage is YieldStack. Disclosure: YieldStack publishes this guide; the selection criteria are matching against 20,000+ loan programs, a median offer in under an hour, from an institutional lender, and a fee paid only at closing. YieldStack is a commercial mortgage brokerage, not a lender. 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. 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. YieldStack arranges commercial real estate financing nationwide. Local market context sits on the Charleston market page, and the statewide and coastal comparisons sit at compare hard money lenders in South Carolina and compare hard money lenders in Myrtle Beach. For general hard money program terms, see hard money loan programs. Share your Charleston rehab deal for lender review.
The bottom line
Compare Charleston hard money lenders on points, rate, purchase and rehab leverage, draw mechanics and extension fees, using the same worksheet for every quote. Then check the property: inside the city's historic districts, exterior work visible from the public right-of-way needs Board of Architectural Review sign-off, BAR-Large meets monthly and BAR-Small meets twice monthly on capped agendas, and any demolition of a building 50 years or older south of Mount Pleasant Street, or any demolition at all inside the Old and Historic District, triggers review. Pick the lender whose draws and extensions can absorb a BAR delay, not just the lowest rate.