Skip to main content
Apply now
Direct private lending in most states
Call us anytime at 512-617-9400
Houston Hard Money and Investor Loans
We ask for the floodplain determination on every Houston file.
Houston has no zoning, so recorded deed restrictions decide use. Suburban MUD districts stack onto the county and school rate. Harris County recycles distressed inventory on a fixed monthly clock. Business-purpose loans only, and every structure is set in underwriting.
We hold the capital and the decision, so term sheets come back same day.
Knows the Houston map
Different submarkets, different rules. We underwrite the deal in front of us, not a template.
Fast on a complete file
We can fund in as few as 5-7 days when your documents are ready.
Every investor strategy
Fix and flip, DSCR rental, ground-up, bridge, and portfolio, all in-house.
Loan programs in Houston
Acquisition through exit, all funded or arranged by one lender.
Houston lending questions
Do you lend in the Houston metro?
Yes, across greater Houston. We are a Texas-based direct lender headquartered in Bee Cave, and we fund deals in Houston, Katy, Sugar Land, The Woodlands, Pearland, Pasadena, Cypress, and Spring. Every loan is business-purpose only, on investment property, and terms are subject to underwriting. See how we lend across Texas or talk to us.
How fast can you close against a Harris County first-Tuesday sale date?
Same-day term sheet, and funding in as few as 5 to 7 days once title and insurance come together. The Texas calendar is why that matters. Foreclosure here is non-judicial under Property Code section 51.002: notice of sale goes out at least 21 days before the sale, and sales run the first Tuesday of the month at the county courthouse between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., moving to the first Wednesday when the first Tuesday falls on January 1 or July 4. Harris County recycles distressed inventory on that fixed monthly clock, and a bank timeline does not clear it. Texas also closes through title companies rather than closing attorneys, and title premiums are promulgated statewide by the Department of Insurance, so every licensed company charges the same basic premium. Shop your title company on execution, not price. Apply now. Subject to underwriting.
Sources: codes.findlaw.com, tdi.texas.gov
Houston has no zoning. What actually controls what I can build?
The recorded deed restrictions on that block, plus Chapter 42 of the city code. Houston is the largest U.S. city without conventional zoning, and voters rejected zoning in 1948, 1962, and 1993. In place of a zoning map you get private deed restrictions, which the City will help enforce, and Chapter 42, which sets platting, minimum lot size, building lines, parking, and density. Minimum lot size has been cut to as low as 1,400 square feet for townhouse-style development in the urban core and 3,500 square feet across most of the broader urban area, but neighbors can lock a block down through Special Minimum Lot Size and Special Minimum Building Line designations, and those prevail over the citywide minimums. This is the most common Houston diligence miss we see. Pull the title commitment and the recorded restrictions before you close, and have your attorney read them.
Sources: kinder.rice.edu, mercatus.org, bipartisanpolicy.org
How much does flood risk really change a Houston deal?
Enough that we ask for the floodplain determination on every file. Two separate things drive it. First, cost of construction: the City's Chapter 19 ordinance, effective September 2018, requires new construction and substantial improvements in the 500-year floodplain to sit 2 feet above the 500-year base flood elevation, with zero net fill, and "substantial improvement" includes expanding an existing footprint by 33% or more. A bump-out can turn a cosmetic scope into an elevation and compensating-storage project. Second, cost of carry: only about 1 in 7 Harris County households carries an NFIP policy, so a seller with no flood insurance is not evidence of no flood risk, and the proposed MAAPnext maps would more than double the county properties in the 100-year floodplain, from about 158,500 to about 330,000, though those maps still face months of review. Under Risk Rating 2.0 the map change drives the mandatory-purchase trigger for federally backed mortgages while the rating engine drives the premium. Carry a flood premium in the expense stack even when the current policy shows none.
Sources: library.municode.com, kinder.rice.edu, floodinsuranceguru.com
What should I budget for property taxes and MUD in the Houston suburbs?
More than the rate inside the Loop, and the address decides it. Combined property tax inside Houston city limits ran roughly 2.1% of taxable value on 2025 rates, with the school district the largest share. Most newer subdivisions in Katy, Cypress, Fort Bend, and Montgomery County sit inside a Municipal Utility District, a special-purpose taxing district that funds water, sewer, and drainage and levies its own ad valorem tax on top of county, school, and city rates, which can push a total rate toward 3%. MUD rates decline over time as the original bonds amortize, so pull the actual district rate for the specific property rather than using a neighborhood average. One live 2026 item: the Texas 20% circuit-breaker cap on appraised value for non-homestead property, under Tax Code section 23.231, is set to expire December 31, 2026 unless the Legislature extends it, and the homestead cap never applied to investment property. Talk to your CPA about your own position.
Sources: texas.public.law, har.com, ballardpropertytaxprotest.com
What credit score do I need to borrow in Houston?
It depends on the program, and on several there is no minimum at all. Our asset-based loans, fix and flip, bridge and ground-up construction, carry no minimum score, and weaker credit is normally handled with lower leverage rather than a decline. DSCR and bank statement loans start at 640, conventional investment starts at 580, and transactional funding has no credit check at all. There is no hard credit pull to start a Houston conversation. Subject to underwriting.
How much cash do I bring, counting the MUD levy and the flood premium?
Between 10% and 30% of the deal, depending on the program. Fix and flip runs up to 90% of purchase and up to 100% of rehab, so on a $300,000 Houston purchase that is $30,000 down (300,000 x 90% = 270,000). DSCR and conventional investment run up to 80% LTV, which is $60,000 on the same house. Ground-up runs up to 85% of cost and commercial bridge up to 75% LTV. Add the Houston carry on top: a MUD levy in the newer suburbs and a flood premium the seller may not carry are the two lines out-of-town buyers leave out. Subject to underwriting.
Sources: har.com, kinder.rice.edu
What is the smallest loan you will write in Houston?
$100,000 on most residential programs. Fix and flip, DSCR and bank statement loans all start at $100,000. Portfolio loans start at $500,000 across five or more doors, and SBA starts at $350,000. A low-priced Houston purchase can fall under the floor on price alone, though on a flip the rehab budget we fund counts toward the loan amount. Tell us the price and the scope and we will say straight away whether it sizes. Subject to underwriting.
Serving Houston and nearby
HoustonKatySugar LandThe WoodlandsPearlandPasadenaCypressSpring
Other markets
TexasCaliforniaWashingtonNorth CarolinaColoradoOklahomaFloridaGeorgiaTennesseeAustinDallasSan AntonioFort WorthTampaAtlantaNashvilleKilleenCollege StationDentonLubbockMcAllenMidlandOrlandoFort MyersCorpus ChristiEl PasoWacoTylerJacksonvilleMiamiFort LauderdaleWest Palm BeachOklahoma CityTulsaCharlotteGreensboroRaleighSarasotaColorado SpringsDenverFort CollinsSeattleTacomaSpokaneVancouverLos AngelesInland EmpireSan DiegoSacramentoCentral ValleyBakersfieldWashington DCEverettBellinghamOlympiaTri-CitiesYakimaOrange CountyStocktonSan FranciscoOaklandNew BraunfelsGalvestonSan JoseSan Luis ObispoOxnardSanta RosaSan MarcosLaredoBoulderPuebloGrand JunctionNormanStillwaterLawtonEdmondBroken ArrowEnidMuskogeeSan BernardinoSan MateoSanta BarbaraFriscoWaxahachieForneyRockwallShermanSt. LouisSt. CharlesSpringfieldColumbiaMissouriKansas CityLibertyArnoldJoplinSee the map
About the local figures on this page
Local rules move. Every tax rate, fee, ordinance and market figure here comes from a primary source and carries the date we read it, and we correct them as the rules change. Where a number is mid-change or we could not verify it, we say so rather than guess. Before you commit a budget, confirm anything that drives it with the city or county, and talk to your attorney or CPA on questions of law or tax.
Published by USA Mortgage Funding, LLC, NMLS #152588. Researched from primary sources by our team, drafted with AI assistance, and every figure checked against its source before publishing. Where an answer rests on a public record, that record is linked under it. Figures read on 2026-08-12.
Funding Houston deals fast.
Get real terms, usually same day. No obligation, no hard credit pull to start.