The quick read: Compare Hartford hard money lenders on the same five lines — points, rate, purchase-and-rehab leverage, draw mechanics and extension fee — then run the exit test against Hartford's property classification. A Municipal Accountability Review Board memorandum on the City of Hartford's FY2023 budget shows residential property (one-, two- and three-family homes) assessed at 36.75% of fair market value on the 2021 Grand List, up from 35.00% the year before, while apartment property with four or more units is assessed at 70.00% — exactly double the residential ratio. A rehab that adds a fourth unit does not just change the rent roll; it can move the building into a classification assessed at roughly twice the share of value, which changes the exit buyer's tax line and the after-repair value a lender will actually size to.
What should you compare first on a Hartford hard money term sheet?
The first comparison on any Hartford 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 paired with thin rehab funding or slow draws can cost more than a higher rate from 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 specific to Hartford, 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 Hartford purchase-and-rehab deal?
This framework sorts Hartford-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 a two- or three-family rehab and a conversion to four units carry very different tax and exit math in Hartford.
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 unit count change 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 Hartford, 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 Connecticut. What this Hartford page adds is the local test below: what a unit-count change does to the assessment ratio before you ever get to the sale.
Why does Hartford's assessment ratio change the exit on a three-unit to four-unit rehab?
Hartford's assessment ratio changes the exit math because the city assesses one-, two- and three-family residential property at a sharply lower share of fair market value than apartment property with four or more units, so a rehab that adds a fourth unit can push the building into a classification taxed on roughly double the assessed share.
That higher assessed share bites even before the mill rate is applied, and the shift belongs in your underwriting, not just your rent-roll math.
The source is a Municipal Accountability Review Board memorandum on the City of Hartford's FY2023 budget, which carries the Assessor's own Grand List summary table. For the 2021 Grand List, residential classes — one-family, two-family, three-family and multi-family residential — were assessed at 36.75% of fair market value, up from 35.00% on the 2020 Grand List. Apartment property, CRDA apartments, commercial and industrial classes were assessed at 70.00% of fair market value in both years — exactly double the 2021 residential ratio. The same memo shows the Real Estate/Personal Property mill rate falling from 74.29 (FY2022) to 68.95 (FY2023).
Illustrative example (round numbers, not a real deal): take a renovated building with a $400,000 after-repair value either way. Classified as a three-family residential property at the 36.75% ratio, the assessed value is $147,000; at the FY2023 mill rate of 68.95, the annual tax is roughly $10,100. Classified as a four-unit apartment property at the 70.00% ratio, the same $400,000 ARV produces a $280,000 assessed value and a tax bill of roughly $19,300 — nearly double. That gap changes what a buyer will pay and what a lender should size the ARV to, independent of the mill rate itself moving in any given year. Confirm the current Grand List ratios and mill rate with Hartford's Assessor before you finalize a unit-count decision; a memorandum dated 2022 is the dated source behind these figures, not a live quote for today's bill.
Which draw and extension terms matter most when a Hartford rehab adds a unit?
On a Hartford rehab that converts a three-family into a four-unit building, draw and extension terms often matter as much as the headline rate, because a permitting delay, a discovered condition or a scope change tied to the added unit can push the project past its original schedule.
Every month past maturity is priced by the extension clause rather than 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 change tied to adding the fourth unit
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 unit count, and therefore the assessment classification, you actually plan to deliver
A lender that funds draws quickly, allows reallocation into a unit-count-driven change 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 permitting delay into a default notice.
What should a Hartford investor have ready before asking hard money lenders for terms?
A Hartford investor should have the purchase contract, a line-item rehab budget, the property's current and planned unit count, and its current Grand List classification ready, so every lender prices the same scope and quotes stay comparable side by side. That packet also lets a brokerage move faster matching the deal to lenders who already understand Hartford's residential-versus-apartment split.
Property: address, parcel ID, current unit count and Grand List classification
Plan: whether the rehab changes the unit count, and the target classification after renovation
Rehab: line-item budget, contractor bid and timeline, with a contingency for scope changes
Draw plan: inspection process, who orders it and the lender's days-to-fund
Exit: sale comps by unit count, and the financing your target buyer will use, or a refinance plan
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The bottom line
Compare Hartford hard money lenders on points, rate, purchase and rehab leverage, draw mechanics and extension fees, using the same worksheet for every quote. Then run the exit test: a Municipal Accountability Review Board memorandum on the City of Hartford's FY2023 budget shows residential property (one-, two- and three-family homes) assessed at 36.75% of fair market value on the 2021 Grand List versus 70.00% for apartment property with four or more units — exactly double. A rehab that adds a fourth unit changes which side of that line the finished building sits on, so confirm current ratios with the Assessor and pick the lender whose draws and extensions can absorb a classification or scope change, not just the lowest rate.