Fix and Flip in Santa Rosa

No published timeline exists, so budget conservatively and confirm with the building department before you set the schedule. Santa Rosa's post-fire Resilient City zones offered expedited review after the 2017 and 2020 fires, but reporting says those standards ran only through 2025-12-31, and the immediate five-day expedited tracks have largely concluded, with Coffey Park roughly 96 to 97% rebuilt. Do not assume an expedited path is open on a standard rehab, in Santa Rosa or anywhere else in the county. Impact fees, school fees, and water and sewer capacity charges also were not published anywhere we could verify, so get the city or county's current fee schedule in writing before you finalize your draw budget.

Roughly 1.14% of your purchase price a year in Santa Rosa, prorated across your hold, with no homestead or owner-occupant discount for an investor. The most common total ad valorem rate in Santa Rosa is 1.1375% of assessed value, and the base resets to whatever you pay at close, not the seller's old bill. On the Santa Rosa median of about $815,000 as of mid-2026 that runs about $9,271 a year (815,000 x 0.011375 = $9,271). Countywide the total ranges from 1.0365% to 1.1905% across the county's 715 tax rate areas, and a Sonoma County Junior College bond and a Warm Springs Dam levy sit on nearly every bill regardless of city, so the floor is set by county-scale debt, not by your specific parcel. Model the new bill from your contract price, and talk to your CPA about your specific tax rate area.

Yes. Santa Rosa and Petaluma each stack a second transfer tax that Healdsburg, Windsor, and the rest of the county do not charge. Sonoma County's documentary transfer tax is $0.55 per $500 of price, about $1.10 per $1,000. Santa Rosa and Petaluma add another $2.00 per $1,000 on top, with no exemption for assumed loans on the city portion. On an $815,000 Santa Rosa exit that's about $2,526.50 total, roughly 0.31% of price (815,000 / 1,000 x 3.10 = 2,526.50), against about $896.50, roughly 0.11%, on the identical price in Healdsburg or Windsor. Cloverdale, Cotati, Healdsburg, Rohnert Park, Sebastopol, Sonoma, and the Town of Windsor levy no city transfer tax at all. Who customarily pays it in Sonoma County was not published anywhere we could verify, so confirm that with your escrow officer before you price the exit.

It's the first item in the file, not the last. Sonoma County burned three times in four years, the 2017 Tubbs Fire, the 2019 Kincade Fire, and the 2020 Glass Fire, which is why admitted carriers priced and withdrew here earlier than in most of the state. Cal Fire re-mapped the county's fire hazard zones in February 2025, and the exposure moved in both directions: the City of Santa Rosa's own "very high" acreage fell while unincorporated county acreage rose sharply. A property's hazard designation may have changed in either direction since a 2024 comparable closed. If the standard market declines the risk, the California FAIR Plan writes basic fire coverage only, so a FAIR Plan policy needs a companion Difference in Conditions policy for liability, water, and theft alongside it. Get a quote into the file before the appraisal.

Contractor-performed work, by name, if you accept an offer within 18 months of taking title. California Civil Code section 1102.6h requires a seller of a 1-4 unit property who accepts an offer inside that window to disclose any room additions, structural modifications, other alterations, or repairs done by contractors, including contractor names and contact information, with permits attachable. Keep contractor records and permits organized from the start of the rehab so this is a formality at close, not a scramble. Our fix and flip loan funds draws as work completes, which gives you a running paper trail for exactly this requirement.

The access road, before a single interior wall gets touched. Sonoma County's fire-safe standards require an existing private road serving a parcel to run at least 12 feet wide with a foot of vegetation clearance on each side, a new driveway to carry a 12-foot traffic lane with turnouts on long runs, turnouts at least 20 feet wide and 30 feet long, and no grade above 15% without County Fire Chief approval. On a steep or long-driveway rural lot, that access work is a line item before rehab even starts, and it's a real reason some Sonoma County lots don't pencil at any purchase price. This applies to rural and hillside parcels; it isn't a factor on a typical in-town Santa Rosa lot.

We fund up to 90% of the purchase price and up to 100% of your rehab budget, with the total capped against the after-repair value (ARV). Rehab money is released in draws as the work is completed.

Our fix and flip pricing starts around 9.99%, interest-only, with origination typically 1 to 3 points depending on your experience, leverage, and the deal, and every quote is subject to underwriting. Across the market most flip loans run roughly 9% to 12%. On most flip loans, including ours, interest is charged on the full loan amount, rehab budget included. Paying interest only on rehab funds as you draw them exists in the market, but it is the exception, not the rule.

No. We work with first-time flippers as well as full-time operators. Experience mainly affects your leverage and rate, since a longer track record earns higher loan-to-cost and better pricing. A newer investor can still get funded with a sound deal, a realistic budget, and a clear exit.

We can get you a term sheet the same day on a complete application, and we typically fund within 48 hours of clear title. The main variable is how fast title and insurance come together, which is why a full close usually runs 5 to 7 days. Because we are the lender and underwrite in house, there is no second layer of approval to wait on.

No. Our fix and flip loans have no prepayment penalty, so paying off early when the property sells costs you nothing extra. Terms run 6 months, and because there is no penalty, selling sooner never costs you extra.

We run credit, but this is an asset-based loan, so the property, your budget, and the ARV matter most. We do not ask for W-2s or tax returns to qualify a flip. We will want to confirm you have reserves to carry the project to its exit.