Most files close with a credit score around 640 or higher and a down payment starting near 10%, with loan to cost running up to 93% of combined purchase and renovation costs.
Washington’s flip market is loosening after two tight years. Statewide inventory sat at 24,888 active listings at the end of July 2026, up 19.8% year over year, and the median sale price came in at $640,000. Homes still sell fast in Seattle and the Eastside, often inside three weeks, but Eastern and coastal counties move slower and price much lower. That split matters for underwriting. A rehab strategy built for King County rarely works in Spokane or Yakima, and Loankea prices deals off the property and the plan, not a single statewide average.
Loankea funds acquisition and renovation in one loan for investors working anywhere in Washington, from Seattle and Bellevue to Spokane, Tacoma, and Vancouver.
Program Terms at a Glance
| Program Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Interest rate | Starting at 8%, typically 8% to 11% |
| Loan to cost | Up to 93% of purchase and renovation costs |
| Loan to ARV | Up to 80% of after repair value |
| Loan amount | $75,000 to $10,000,000 |
| Down payment | As low as 10% |
| Term length | 12, 18, or 24 months |
| Time to close | As fast as 7 to 10 business days |
| Credit score | Generally 640 minimum |
| Valuation | Exterior-only in most cases |
| Prepayment penalty | None |
Loans close in an LLC, S corp, C corp, or individual name, and Loankea offers portfolio blanket loans and cash-out refinance options for investors scaling past a single project. Every fix and flip loan is underwritten against the specific property and rehab plan rather than a one-size-fits-all rate.
Why No License Is Needed
Washington regulates consumer mortgages tightly, but it treats investment purpose lending differently. Under RCW 31.04.025(3)(e), a loan made primarily for business, commercial, or investment purposes falls outside the Consumer Loan Act, as long as it isn’t secured by the borrower’s own primary residence. A fix and flip loan on a non-owner-occupied investment property fits squarely inside that exemption. Washington’s usury statute follows the same logic. RCW 19.52.080 bars corporate and business borrowers from raising a usury claim at all, and individual borrowers lose that defense once a loan is shown to be primarily for business or investment use.
The practical effect is that Loankea’s Washington fix and flip loans move at investor speed rather than consumer mortgage speed. There’s no mortgage loan originator license requirement on the transaction itself, no rate cap built for owner occupied lending, and no 30 day consumer disclosure timeline standing between an accepted offer and a closed loan.
What REET Takes at Closing
Washington taxes the sale, not the profit. The state real estate excise tax applies to the full sale price using a graduated structure.
| Portion of sale price | State REET rate |
|---|---|
| Up to $525,000 | 1.10% |
| $525,000 to $1,525,000 | 1.28% |
| $1,525,000 to $3,025,000 | 2.75% |
| Above $3,025,000 | 3.00% |
Most cities and counties add a local REET of roughly 0.25% to 0.50% on top. On a $600,000 flip sale, state REET runs about $6,735, and local REET adds another $1,500 to $3,000 depending on jurisdiction. That’s $8,000 to $10,000 coming off the top before any other closing cost, and it applies whether the deal made money or not. Build it into the underwriting from day one rather than treating it as a surprise line on the settlement statement. The same math holds whether the deal is financed with a fix and flip loan or paid in cash, since REET is charged on the sale price either way.
Your Profit Escapes State Tax
Here’s the offsetting piece. Washington’s capital gains excise tax explicitly exempts real estate. Direct sales of property, including a flipped house, never touch that 7% to 9.9% tax regardless of how large the gain is. And because Washington has no general state income tax, flip profit reported as ordinary business income doesn’t get taxed a second time at the state level either. Compare that to Oregon or California, where flip profit faces state income tax on top of federal tax, and Washington’s structure leaves more of the spread in the investor’s pocket even after REET. That favorable tax treatment is one more reason Washington investors keep turning to a fix and flip loan to fund the purchase and rehab in the first place.
Permit Timelines by City
Holding costs eat margin, and permits are usually the biggest variable in how long a project sits before it can list. Timelines differ sharply by jurisdiction.
- Seattle. SDCI residential review runs roughly 2 to 8 weeks for standard projects, with the 75th percentile closer to 6 to 10 weeks once revision cycles are included. Cosmetic work that doesn’t touch structure, electrical, or plumbing often qualifies for a streamlined STFI permit and can clear in 1 to 2 weeks.
- Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland. Eastside jurisdictions generally move faster than Seattle for comparable scope, often 3 to 6 weeks.
- King County unincorporated and smaller cities. Timelines vary by department capacity, so confirm current turnaround with the local building department before setting a listing date.
Underwrite the slower end of the range, especially on any project with structural, electrical, or plumbing scope in Seattle proper. A fix and flip loan with a flexible term gives Seattle projects room to absorb a permit delay without forcing a rushed sale.
How Fix and Flip Financing Works
Six steps separate a fix and flip loan that funds a profitable project from one that runs into trouble.
- Price the rehab budget for Washington’s housing stock. A large share of Puget Sound inventory predates 1980, which means older wiring, moisture intrusion, and foundation issues show up more often than the initial walkthrough suggests. Carry a real contingency, not a token one.
- Build permit weeks into the draw schedule. A four to eight week permit window on a Seattle project isn’t a delay, it’s the baseline. Structure the loan term around it instead of hoping to beat it.
- Get a bound insurance quote before closing. Wildfire exposure east of the Cascades and older construction in Tacoma and Everett both move premiums. A generic estimate can throw off the whole holding cost model.
- Set ARV from actual closed comps, not list prices. With inventory up nearly 20% year over year, some submarkets are seeing longer days on market and softer list to sold ratios than a year ago. An appraiser’s Form 1007 or a recent closed comp beats an optimistic Zillow number.
- Model REET into the exit, not just the purchase. Since it’s charged on sale price rather than profit, a thin margin deal can shrink fast once REET and local transfer tax come off the top.
- Line up the refinance option before listing. If the sale doesn’t clear at the target price, a pre-vetted exit into a DSCR rental loan keeps the project from turning into a forced, underpriced sale.
Mistakes That Erase Profit
- Treating the statewide median as your market. Puget Sound and Eastern Washington are functionally two different housing economies. Underwriting a Spokane flip off Seattle comps, or the reverse, produces bad numbers either way. A fix and flip loan priced off the wrong market comps sets a project up to fail before it starts.
- Skipping a full permit history check on distressed properties. Unpermitted prior work is common on older investor-owned properties and can stall a sale at inspection or force costly retroactive permitting.
- Assuming licensing rules for consumer mortgages apply here. They don’t, but only if the loan stays structured as business purpose and the property stays non-owner-occupied. Mixing in personal use can pull the deal back under consumer lending rules.
- Ignoring local ordinances on short-term rental exits. Seattle requires a Short-Term Rental Operator License and caps hosts at two units. An investor planning to pivot an unsold flip into an Airbnb needs to confirm eligibility before counting on that income.
- Over-improving past the neighborhood ceiling. High-end finishes on a starter-home block rarely return their cost at resale, regardless of how strong the renovation itself is. That’s true whether the project is funded with a fix and flip loan or cash, since the market doesn’t pay a premium for either one.
From Flip to Long Term Hold
Not every project sells on the original timeline, and that’s fine if the exit was planned for when the fix and flip loan was first structured. Investors who can’t hit their target sale price often refinance into a DSCR loan instead, renting the property while waiting for better market conditions. Loankea underwrites that path on property cash flow rather than personal income, and the same bridge loan that funded the renovation can season into a permanent DSCR mortgage once the property is stabilized. Anyone converting to a rental should factor in Washington’s HB 1217 rent stabilization rules, which cap annual increases and require 90 day notice, since that affects the long-term income projection differently than it affects a straight flip.
What We Offer
Loankea offers diverse fix & flip loan solutions crafted exclusively for property investors looking to venture into house flipping. Each lending option is customized to align with investors’ specific requirements. It helps investors achieve their monetary objectives with flexible terms and reliable support throughout the process.
Whether it’s a first fix and flip loan or the tenth in a growing portfolio, Loankea structures financing around the investor’s timeline and budget.
| Program Highlights | Additional Advantages |
|---|---|
| Funding in as little as 7 to 10 business days | Up to 93% loan to cost |
| Loans from $75,000 to $10,000,000 | Up to 80% of after repair value |
| 12, 18, and 24 month term options | No prepayment penalty |
| Exterior-only valuations available | Portfolio blanket loans for multiple properties |
| No Washington lender license required on business purpose deals | Cash-out refinance available on completed projects |
