What makes PACEfunding better than other PACE options?
PACE Funding offers the low customer rates and is available for property owners who might not be able to use other forms of financing due to low credit scores or not being an owner-occupant.
Are there any fees to the contractor?
There are fee and no-fee options.
What are the customer fees?
The origination fee consists of 6.95% of the project cost, a lien recording fee of $55-285, a loan loss reserve of $90, a foreclosure expense reserve of $10, and an annual administrative fee of $45 which is financed so it is paid over the life of the assessment.
Is there anything that a contractor can do to help if a city or county hasn’t approved PACE Funding yet?
PACE Funding would love a contractor help. Having a local contractor contact his or her local municipality can go a long way to getting PACE Funding approved there. Contact us at 844-USE-PACE for suggestions as to how a contractor can help.
What is the time frame from the start of an application to receiving a notice to proceed?
3 day right of recession
Income documentation
Welcome Call
Signed work contract
Are there any verification calls?
Yes, a welcome call when the contract has been created and a completion call when the certificate of completion has been signed.
Verification calls require a phone call, can the contractor call PACE Funding while in the home and hand the phone to the customer?
Unfortunately, no. The call must be placed to the property owners personal phone number or the property owner can call into PACE Funding from his/her own phone.
How is the customer identification verified?
PACE Funding verifies ID using Docusign’s ID verification, SSN/DOB and address.
What is PACE Funding’s process for payment to the contractor?
Completion Certificate must be Signed by at least one property owner and the contractor
Completion Call verified
Invoice submitted
How long exactly to get money in a contractor’s account when completed?
PACE Funding will initiate the ACH no later than three business days after file is marked pending in portal next to invoice.
If a contractor is using solar or other equipment not listed in the portal, how difficult would it be to get it added?
Just email PACEfunding the data sheet at operations@pacefunding.com. It also must be PACE approved for efficiency standards.
Why can’t PACE Funding fund drought tolerant landscaping and other measures funded by other PACE providers?
PACE Funding absolutely can. Artificial turf is already in our portal. If a contractor has other projects that a contractor believes to qualify for PACE financing, call 844-USE-PACE or email operations@pacefunding.com
Can the customer opt out of financing after the 3-day rescission period?
If the customer would really like to switch from PACE to HELOC (for example), PACE Funding would work with the contractor to make sure they were still getting paid on time. The customer still has power through the Certificate of Completion, so we’ve found in these cases it’s best to have a conversation with all parties to make sure the customer is getting the financing that they really want as well as the payments/timings that the contractor needs.
The assessment contract is only good for 120 days. What happens if the system is not funded within 120 days?
PACE Funding would reserve the right to reprice after 120 days. PACE Funding would at minimum need an addendum because the capitalized interest will be different (lower if the project is late).
What is required to start funding?
A Certificate of Completion and work contract are required. PACE Funding want the permit when it’s done, but it’s not required for funding.
Are the notices to proceed ever conditional? Such as susceptible to holdups when allotted resources to projects?
No, it is solid.
Does a contractor do site inspections?
For probationary dealers, PACE Funding will inspect up to the first 5 projects. PACE Funding continues to perform random inspections of all contractors.
Do PACE Funding send contractors at the end of the year 1099?
Yes.
The program requires that the permit be uploaded to close out a project. Is this the initial building permit that allows construction to move forward or is this a post-inspection signed-off final building permit?
Signed job card.
Can a contractor provide paper documents vs electronic? Many customers do not have access to email, computer, etc.
PACE Funding can provide pdf’s that the contractor can print, get signed, scan and email back to PACE Funding.
Why does there seem to be delays with Notice to Proceed (NTP)?
It is dependent on the final customer’s signing date. If a contractor feel that a contractor should have received the NTP, please call 844-USE-PACE.
Can PACE Funding send trigger emails during the process? Ability to select turning on/off notifications?
A contractor should be receiving emails when the customer credit decision is made and the Notice to Proceed is issued. For other milestone or status updates, a contractor can check the portal.
Does PACE Funding offer milestone payments?
We have a partnership with a partner that offers advance payments for a fee.
What has been PACE Funding’s approval rate?
80-85%. The majority of the credit turn-downs have been due to delinquent mortgage payments.
How is the mortgage-payment history checked?
The customer is allowed one late mortgage payment in the past 12 months according to Experian.
How do trusts work? What’s needed about the trust?
PACE Funding will verify trustee information on title.
What type of credit report does PACE Funding use?
Tri-merge all 3 bureaus. It shouldn’t matter since PACE Funding is not getting a score; PACE Funding is just looking for specific missed payments or a bankruptcy within the past 2 years.
How long does a contractor have to wait for credit manual situations?
A few minutes if it is during business hours and just a name issue (i.e. missing “Sr.” or “Jr.”). Contractors can reduce the frequency of these issues by making sure that the customer fills out the application completely and accurately (e.g. making sure that the name is spelled correctly, etc.).
Otherwise, it depends on the customer if PACE Funding needs a trust document.
If a contractor receives a “manual” credit decision, then a contractor can call 844-USE-PACE to inquire about the application.
Can a contractor speak directly with an underwriter?
Yes, call 844-USE-PACE. However, PACE Funding cannot reveal confidential credit information. It may be more helpful to have the property owner call.
Can the homeowner or contractor appeal the Maximum Financing Amount?
Yes, if a party feels that the property value is too low, PACE Funding will accept a professional appraisal as the basis for a property value. PACE Funding will pay for the cost of a professional appraisal if the project is funded.
Are split tickets allowed?
PACE Funding can finance the part of a larger project that is PACE eligible.
Can projects be easily split into two separate funding checks for example windows first, and then roofing?
If needed, PACE Funding could either make two payments to the contractor for the separate projects or PACE Funding could do it as 2 separate loans/assessments and waive some of the customer fees on the second assessment.
Is there a limit to the number of times the assessment can be paid down?
There is no limit as long as the prepayment is at least $2,500. They can make as many prepayments as they like without any charge.
Prepayment Fees: What is the “reasonable fee” in the event that the prepayment is less than 2,500? Similarly, can PACE Funding specify (or put some bounds around) what the redemption fee would be?
Likely around $150, but it may be more if the county has unusually high filing fees.
If the assessment is paid down, does it go straight to principal?
We’ll verify with the customer, but when they prepay, PACE Funding assumes they want to pay down the principal and re-amortize the new balance over the remaining term.
Can the tool recalculate payments if the tax credit is applied AFTER year one? (For example, the annual payment is $2,230 in the first year, but then the customer applies the tax credit in year two, will the system account for the previous higher payment and include subsequent lower ones?)
Because only a small amount of principal is paid in year 1, the year 2 of the after-the-tax credit schedule is very close to what it would be after re-amortization. If the sales representative wants a better number, he/she can run the payment calculator for the post-tax-credit cost.
Is the 25-year product available to all types of projects? (Not just solar)
PACE assessments cannot be longer than the life of an asset. The cities don’t want a homeowner to take out a 25-year loan for an air conditioner with a 15-year warranty. Therefore, only a few types gets 25-year PACE, such as solar, roofing and windows. However, for mixed projects, PACE Funding will go with the project with the highest portion of the cost. For example, a $25,000 project that is $15,000 for solar and $10,000 for windows can get 25 years for the whole project.
Can a customer participate in this program if they have already participated in PACE in the past?
Yes, PACE Funding has already seen this happen. PACE Funding just can’t refinance an existing PACE-financed project, nor an existing project that’s been previously financed by something else, like a credit card or HELOC.
How is the maximum financing amount determined?
The maximum financing amount is the LOWEST of:
15% of the property value
Available equity in the property (must be at least 10% to qualify)
$200,000
Bear in mind that the maximum financed amount is not just the project cost; it also includes fees and capitalized interest, so the maximum project cost will always be smaller than the maximum finance amount. PACE Funding shows maximum project cost in the portal for contractor’s convenience.
Why is PACE Funding’s Maximum Financed Amount less than that from other PACE providers for solar systems?
We’ll finance solar up to $7/W pus adders for roof repairs, service panel upgrades and/or trenching.
$7W allows the installer to enjoy 40%+ gross margins.
Does PACE Funding offer a 24 months deferred payment option?
PACE Funding only offers deferment until the next property tax payment. That can be up to 18 months, or as little as 6 months.
