Seattle fix and flip loans for a high-basis, low-volume market.
Built for the active flipper. We fund up to 90% of the purchase price and up to 100% of the rehab budget, capped to ARV, on a 6-month interest-only term. King County is a high-basis repositioning market, not a high-volume flip market, so the financing has to fit a smaller number of larger deals well. Business-purpose only, and every structure is set in underwriting.
Typical figures, subject to underwriting and market conditions. Not a commitment to lend.
How it works
Draws are reimbursed quickly as work is completed, and a dedicated closer stays with your file from term sheet to payoff. You can get a term sheet the same day, and we typically fund within 48 hours of clear title, so most flips close in 5-7 days as soon as title and insurance come together.
By volume, no, and the data says so plainly. ATTOM's Q1 2026 Home Flipping Report names the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro as tied for the lowest flip rate of any large U.S. metro at 5.1% of sales, against an 8.0% national rate. That does not mean the deals here do not work. It means a Seattle flip is a high-basis repositioning play on a specific property, not a volume business, and underwriting should treat every deal as its own case rather than assuming a pipeline of comparable flips.
What will Washington's excise tax cost me when I sell a Seattle flip?
Two layers, and the local one is a flat rate, not the graduated one people assume. Washington's state real estate excise tax is graduated: 1.10% up to $525,000, 1.28% from $525,000.01 to $1,525,000, then higher brackets above that. King County's local add-on, on top of the state tax, is a flat 0.50% in every King County jurisdiction, including Seattle, not a graduated city rate as sometimes claimed. On an $800,000 sale, that is roughly $9,295 in state tax plus $4,000 local, about $13,295 total, an effective rate near 1.66%. Budget it as a real exit cost, and confirm the current thresholds before you rely on them into next year.
How much should I budget for property taxes while I hold a Seattle flip?
The rate looks low next to Texas, but it applies to a much higher value. Seattle's 2026 collective levy rate is about 0.991% of assessed value, which on a mid-tier Seattle house near $861,390 works out to roughly $8,536 a year. King County's total levy also rose about 10% countywide for 2026 while assessed values rose only 5.4%, driven mostly by voter-approved measures rather than value growth, so a carry budget that escalates taxes at a flat 1% a year understates the real number. Check the parcel's own levy code before you size a hold.
Where in King County do fix and flip deals actually pencil?
South King County, where the basis is roughly half of Seattle's. Mid-tier home values run $602,874 in Federal Way, $614,442 in Auburn, and $654,483 in Kent, against $861,390 in Seattle proper, as of June 2026. A lower entry basis means a lower dollar exposure on the excise tax and property tax carry described above, and a smaller purchase-to-rehab spread to defend at resale. It is the corridor where a Seattle-area flip most resembles a conventional flip economics, rather than the high-basis repositioning play the core city requires.
Is Seattle's housing market soft enough that I should plan for a slower resale?
Yes, plan on it. Active listings across the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro rose 21.4% year over year to 12,278 in July 2026, roughly 41% of active inventory was carrying a price cut, and median days on market rose to 44 from 40 a year earlier. Median list price was down 1.3% year over year. It reads as a softening seller's market rather than a distressed one, but it is not a market where you can count on a quick sale to bail out a thin rehab margin. Underwrite the purchase price and the rehab budget conservatively.
What if a Seattle flip does not sell and I want to hold or rebuild instead?
Seattle now allows at least four housing units by right on most residential lots that formerly permitted only one, and up to six near a major transit stop, under zoning that took effect 2026-01-21. If a rehab does not clear at the price you need, the lot itself may support a ground-up rebuild at a higher unit count instead of a straight resale. That is a different underwriting decision with its own construction budget and timeline, so if you are weighing a rebuild, our ground-up construction program is the one to look at before you commit.
What credit score do I need for a fix and flip loan in Seattle?
There is no minimum score on this program. We do run credit, but on an asset-based loan it carries far less weight than it would at a bank. The deal carries the file: purchase price, rehab budget, and ARV. Weaker credit is usually answered with lower leverage rather than a decline, and there is no hard credit pull to start. That fits how Seattle deals actually work, since a flip here is a high-basis repositioning play on one specific property rather than a pipeline of comparable deals, so we underwrite the property in front of us. Subject to underwriting.
About 10% of the purchase, plus closing costs. We fund up to 90% of the purchase price and up to 100% of the rehab budget, capped to ARV. On a $600,000 South King County purchase, close to Federal Way's $602,874 mid-tier value, that is up to $540,000 from us and $60,000 from you (600,000 x 90% = 540,000), with rehab drawn against the schedule instead of paid up front. Carry the excise tax and the property tax hold cost on top of that, because both land on the same deal. Subject to underwriting.
What is the smallest fix and flip loan you will write in Seattle?
$100,000, and the program runs up to $5M. Most Seattle-area deals sit well inside that range: mid-tier values run $602,874 in Federal Way, $614,442 in Auburn, and $654,483 in Kent, against $861,390 in Seattle proper, and we are lending against purchase plus rehab rather than the finished value. The term is 6 months, interest-only, so size the loan to a rehab schedule you can actually hit. Subject to underwriting.
Yes. First-time flippers are welcome on this program. Experience helps, but it is not a gate, and there is no minimum credit score on an asset-based loan. What we look at hardest on a first deal is the rehab budget and the exit price. Be careful with the exit here: Seattle is tied for the lowest flip rate of any large US metro, so plan on a real marketing period rather than a fast resale, and keep a contingency in the budget. Subject to underwriting.
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 2026-08-15.
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