If, after months of working from home, you’ve reached a point where the kitchen table isn’t enough, you’re not alone. A growing number of owners renovate and invest in their own workspaces. In fact, PowerPay, a home improvement lending platform, saw a 92% increase in home office renovations among its borrowers during the second half of 2020.

“We have seen a massive investment movement in the home / work environment,” says Mike Petrakis, Founder and CEO of PowerPay.

If, like many, you are planning to build a formal home office to stay on the job or increase your productivity, you have several options to pay for it.

8 ways to pay for your home office setup

1. Your employer

If you work for someone else, your employer should be the first source you turn to for help setting up your home office.

“Especially now with COVID-19, most employers reimburse employees who work from home for personal expenses,” says Mark LaSpisa, certified financial planner and management consultant for Vermillion Financial Advisors in South Barrington, Illinois. “They provide everything from computers and monitors to desks, chairs, Internet service and utilities.”

2. Refinancing of collection

If you are looking to do a home office remodel or addition, refinance your mortgage and withdrawing money is one way of accessing money to pay for it.

In one refinancing of collection, you take out a new mortgage for more than you owe on your current mortgage and pocket the money in a lump sum, less closing costs, which are typically 2% to 5% of what you borrow. The interest rate in a withdrawal agreement is often a cheaper option than a credit card, and most mortgage lenders will allow you to use up to 80% of the value of your home.

3. Home equity

Another way to take advantage of the equity in your home without refinancing your primary mortgage is to Home equity line of credit (HELOC) or home equity loan.

“Most people don’t refinance a $ 200,000 loan to get $ 5,000. whatever you use and you don’t have to use the entire line of credit.

HELOCs have variable interest rates, but since you are using your home as collateral, the rate is usually lower than what you would pay with a credit card or other form of unsecured debt. Home equity loans have fixed rates, and any interest you pay is tax deductible if you use the money for home improvements.

4. Personal loan

While accessing equity in your home may be a cheaper borrowing option to finance a home office, a Personal loan can also be a good fit depending on your goals. If adding a home office is a small to medium sized project for you, for example, you can borrow a smaller amount of money with a personal loan.

One of the main advantages of a personal loan is that you don’t use your home as collateral to secure the loan. Even though personal loan rates can be high – up to 36% per year for those with less than good credit – you could get one for as little as 3% if your credit rating is excellent.

5. Credit cards

Used responsibly, credit card – especially zero percent introductory offers – can be a low or no interest borrowing option for pay for a home office upgrade.

Cards are also a good option when it comes to buying office supplies or electronic financing like a laptop, printer or tablet. Some cards offer up to 5% cash back on electronics purchases, while others allow you to accumulate reward points that can be donated to others.

Credit cards come with higher interest rates than other types of borrowing, so be careful using them. You could end up paying a lot of interest if you can’t pay the balance in full each month.

6. SBA loan

If you own your own business or are self employed, a US Small Business Administration (SBA) loan can help you get the financing you need for a variety of for-profit business expenses, including a home office.

“If you are just starting a business or are already in business, the SBA has all kinds of programs that they can help you with in terms of capital to start a business,” says LaSpisa.

On a large scale, an SBA Program 7 (a) loan provides up to $ 5 million to eligible small businesses for uses such as an extension, renovation or new construction. For a smaller project, the SBA microcredit program can provide up to $ 50,000 for expenses such as furniture and office supplies.

7. Tax deductions

While not an outright way to pay for a home office, the home office tax deduction can help you recover some of your expenses if you qualify. The deduction applies only to the self-employed (use of the deduction has been suspended for employees until 2025) and is available to both landlords and tenants.

To be eligible, the IRS requires that your home be your primary place of business and that you regularly use part of your home – either a dedicated room or part of a room – exclusively for doing business.

8. Reuse an existing space

A home office doesn’t have to be expensive, if anything, if you reuse an existing space in your home and reuse the furniture you already own.

Interior designer Penny Francis, owner and principal designer of Eclectic Home in New Orleans, saw an attic transformed into a ‘zoom room’ with a backdrop, as well as a cleaned closet as a workspace designated.

If you decide to repurpose a room, Francis recommends repainting it to get the most bang for your buck, then focusing on functional pieces like a desk and a good desk lamp for work lighting.

“On the organizational side, little things like storage bins in a discount store can make a huge difference,” says Francis.

A detached structure, such as a garage or storage shed, are also a fair game for repurposing. You can upgrade a structure using many of the same financing options, including a home equity loan and a personal loan, as you would for an interior renovation.

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