Category: Financing

If you have looked into contractor financing and noticed that you receive less than the full project price when a customer finances, that deduction is called a dealer fee. It is one of the most important numbers in contractor financing and most contractors do not think about it clearly until they have been paying it for a while.

Here is a complete breakdown of what dealer fees are, how much they cost across major platforms, and how to evaluate whether you are actually paying more than you need to.

What a Dealer Fee Is

A dealer fee, sometimes called a merchant discount or merchant fee, is the percentage of a financed loan amount that gets deducted from the contractor’s payout before disbursement. The financing company collects it as compensation for providing the financing product, particularly on lower-rate or promotional offers where they are giving up interest income.

Here is how it works in practice: A homeowner finances a $20,000 roofing job through a platform that charges you an 8% dealer fee. The platform pays out $18,400. You do the $20,000 job and collect $18,400. The $1,600 difference is the dealer fee, gone before you ever see it.

For standard interest-bearing loans, dealer fees typically run 3 to 6 percent. For promotional 0% APR programs, they jump to 8 to 15 percent or higher, because the financing company needs to recover the interest income they are waiving for the homeowner.

Dealer Fees Across Major Platforms

Platform	Standard Loan Fee	0% APR Promo Fee	Annual Subscription
GreenSky	3 to 6%	8 to 15% (up to 26.6%)	None
Wisetack	3.9% per transaction	+4.9 to 9.9% add-on	None
Service Finance	1.25 to 12%	10 to 15% on promos	None
Sunlight Financial	15 to 25%	Included in tier	None
EnerBank (Regions)	0 to 16.4%	Included in product tiers	None
Hearth	$0 per transaction	$0 per transaction	$1,499 to $4,999/year

The Annual Fee vs. Dealer Fee Math

Hearth’s model is structurally different from every other platform on this list. Instead of dealer fees, they charge an annual subscription. The Pro plan runs approximately $1,799 per year (as of early 2026). You pay that once a year, regardless of how many jobs you finance.

Here is the comparison at different volume levels assuming an 8% average dealer fee on other platforms:

Annual Financed Volume	Dealer Fee at 8% (Other Platforms)	Hearth Pro ($1,799/yr)	Savings with Hearth
$25,000	$2,000	$1,799	$201
$50,000	$4,000	$1,799	$2,201
$100,000	$8,000	$1,799	$6,201
$250,000	$20,000	$1,799	$18,201
$500,000	$40,000	$1,799	$38,201
$1,000,000	$80,000	$1,799	$78,201

The break-even point sits around $22,500 in annual financed volume. Below that, dealer fee platforms may cost less. Above that, Hearth’s flat fee starts pulling ahead. At $100,000 or more in annual financed volume, the savings compound significantly every year.

Why Dealer Fees Cost More Than You Think

The compounding problem with dealer fees is that they are invisible at the point of sale. You quote $20,000, the homeowner signs for $20,000, and you think you closed a $20,000 job. But you actually closed an $18,400 job with an 8% fee. That $1,600 is gone.

If you do this 20 times a year at an average financed amount of $18,000 with an 8% fee, you are paying $28,800 per year in dealer fees without ever writing a check. It just never shows up in your account.

Some contractors build the dealer fee into their quotes. If a $20,000 job at cost needs to net $20,000, they quote $21,740 so that after the 8% fee ($1,739) they come out at $20,001. This is a legitimate approach but it raises your quoted price, which can hurt you on competitive bids.

How GreenSky’s Dealer Fees Can Compound on Promotional Financing

GreenSky’s maximum dealer fee is documented at 26.6% in their public materials. That is not a typo. On specialty promotional products with very long 0% periods or other enhanced terms, the fee can reach that level.

At 15%, a $25,000 job nets you $21,250. At 26.6%, that same job nets you $18,350. You are doing $25,000 worth of work and collecting $18,350. The homeowner has no idea. They see a clean monthly payment and no interest. You absorb the entire cost of subsidizing that rate.

This is why contractors who run high promotional financing volume tend to eventually move away from GreenSky-style per-transaction models and toward subscription-based platforms.

Dealer Fees vs. the Alternative: Not Closing the Deal

It is worth keeping the dealer fee in proper perspective. A 5% dealer fee on a $15,000 job costs you $750. If the alternative is losing that job to a competitor who offers financing and you do not, you gave up $15,000 of revenue to save $750.

The better mental model is to think of dealer fees as a cost of financing, the same way you think about material costs or labor. As long as your overall margin holds and financing is helping you close jobs you would otherwise lose, the dealer fee is a cost of doing business that pays for itself.

Where dealer fees become a problem is when they are high enough to erode your margin on jobs you would have closed anyway at cash pricing. If 70% of your jobs are financing and you are paying 10% dealer fees, you are giving up a lot of margin that could stay in your business.

What Contractors Should Actually Do

Step one is to know what you are paying. Pull your last 12 months of financed volume and multiply by your average dealer fee percentage. If you have never done this math, the number may surprise you.

Step two is to compare that to Hearth’s annual subscription cost. If your dealer fees exceed $1,799 annually, Hearth is already saving you money on a pure cost basis, even before accounting for the additional software features and broader FICO coverage you get with the subscription.

Step three is to evaluate your volume trajectory. If you are growing and expect to finance more jobs next year than this year, the case for a flat annual fee gets stronger every year. Dealer fees scale with revenue. A flat subscription does not.

The math is not complicated. It just requires knowing your numbers, which most contractors do not track specifically for financed projects. Run it once and you will know exactly where you stand.

Zero percent APR financing is one of the most powerful tools in contractor sales. When a homeowner hears “no interest for 18 months,” the objection about cost often disappears. But most contractors, and plenty of homeowners, do not fully understand how it actually works. And there is a version of 0% financing that can seriously burn your customers if they are not careful.

Here is exactly how promotional 0% APR works, what the difference is between true 0% and deferred interest, and what to say when homeowners ask if the catch is real.

Two Types of 0% Financing: Know the Difference

Not all 0% APR offers are the same. There are two fundamentally different structures, and one of them is significantly better for the homeowner.

True 0% APR: No interest accrues during the promotional period. Zero. If a homeowner finances $15,000 for 18 months at true 0% APR, they pay $15,000 divided by 18 months, or $833.33 per month. If there is a remaining balance at the end of month 18, the remaining balance starts accruing interest at the post-promotional APR going forward. No retroactive interest.

Deferred interest: Interest accrues at the full rate the entire time, but is held in a deferred account and waived IF the balance is paid in full by the end of the promotional period. If the homeowner pays off the balance on time, they owe nothing extra. But if even one dollar remains at the end of month 18, all of the deferred interest gets charged retroactively on the original full balance. Not on what is left. On the full original amount.

Example: A homeowner finances $15,000 on a deferred interest plan at 22% APR with an 18-month promotion. If they carry $500 into month 19, they now owe 22% interest on the full $15,000 from the day of origination, which can add thousands of dollars to their balance in a single statement cycle.

This is the 0% financing trap you hear about. And it is common. GreenSky, Synchrony, and many store credit card products use deferred interest structures.

How to Tell Which Type You Are Offering

The language in the disclosures signals which type it is:

• Deferred interest language: “No interest if paid in full within 18 months.” The word “if” is the red flag. Interest has been accruing; it just gets waived if you pay on time.
• True 0% APR language: “0% introductory APR for 18 months.” No “if.” No accruing interest. What you see is what you get.

Wisetack specifically markets their 0% product as true 0% APR, positioning it as the cleaner alternative to deferred interest products. Their website explicitly contrasts the two structures and argues contractors should prefer true 0% to protect customer relationships.

What Contractor Financing Platforms Offer for 0% APR

Hearth: Offers 0% introductory APR credit card products with terms from 6 to 18 months. For well-qualified borrowers (generally low 700s FICO or better). Available as an add-on to their subscription at approximately $399 per year. These are credit card products, not installment loans, so the customer gets a line rather than a fixed monthly payment.

Wisetack: Offers true 0% APR installment loans for 3, 6, 12, or 24-month terms. The contractor pays an add-on fee per transaction: 4.9% for 6 months, 6.9% for 12 months, and 9.9% for 24 months. These stack on top of their base 3.9% transaction fee. Wisetack’s 0% product is a fixed installment loan, not a credit card, so the homeowner has predictable equal payments throughout.

GreenSky: Offers promotional 0% APR for 12 to 24 months, but these are primarily deferred interest products. Contractor dealer fees on promotional programs run 8 to 15 percent, sometimes higher. The consumer gets a 0% period but faces retroactive interest if the balance is not paid off on time.

EnerBank (Regions): Their Zero Interest Loan is a true fixed 0% APR product for the full loan term, not a promotional period. This is one of the cleanest 0% products in contractor financing. No deferred interest, no retroactive charges. The contractor pays dealer fees that vary by product (0 to 16.4% range), but the ZIL is particularly well-suited for storm restoration and deductible financing scenarios.

Service Finance: Offers 0% promotional periods up to 24 months. These are commonly deferred interest structures. Considered best-in-class for promotional rate variety but the deferred interest structure carries consumer risk.

The Dealer Fee Impact on 0% Financing

Promotional 0% financing always costs the contractor more than standard financing. The financing company is giving up interest income during the promotional period, so they recoup it through higher dealer fees charged to the contractor.

Here is how the dealer fee math looks on a $15,000 job for different platforms:

Platform	Product	Dealer Fee	Your Net on $15K Job
GreenSky (0% promo)	Deferred interest, 18 months	10 to 15%	$12,750 to $13,500
Wisetack (0% promo 12mo)	True 0%, 12 months	3.9% + 6.9% = 10.8%	$13,380
Service Finance (0% promo)	Deferred interest, 18 months	8 to 12%	$13,200 to $13,800
Hearth (0% credit card)	True 0%, 6 to 18 months	Included in annual fee	$15,000 minus pro-rated annual cost
EnerBank ZIL	True 0%, full term	0 to 16.4% depending on product	Varies by configuration

The key Hearth advantage on 0% financing is that their annual subscription model means no per-transaction dealer fee even on promotional products. At high volume, this is a significant cost difference.

Monthly Payment Framing for 0% Financing

Zero percent APR converts cleanly to a monthly payment because there is no interest to account for. The math is simply:

Monthly payment = Loan amount divided by number of months

• $8,000 at 0% for 18 months: $444 per month
• $12,000 at 0% for 18 months: $667 per month
• $15,000 at 0% for 18 months: $833 per month
• $20,000 at 0% for 12 months: $1,667 per month
• $25,000 at 0% for 24 months: $1,042 per month

Use these numbers in the room. “This $15,000 bathroom comes out to $833 a month for 18 months with no interest” is a much easier sentence for a homeowner to process than “$15,000 with 0% APR promotional financing for 18 months.”

What to Say When Homeowners Ask “Is There Really No Interest?”

The honest answer is yes, with context. Here is how to explain it clearly:

“Yes, there is genuinely no interest for the 18 months. As long as you pay the full balance before the promotional period ends, you pay exactly what you financed and nothing more. The important thing to know is the difference between true 0% APR and a deferred interest product. The one we use is true 0%, which means no interest builds up in the background. If you had any remaining balance at the end, interest would start from that point forward, not retroactively. That is different from the store credit card type of 0% deals where interest has been building the whole time and gets charged back if you miss the deadline.”

This explanation takes 30 seconds, builds trust, and removes the fear that you are hiding something. Homeowners who understand the product clearly are more likely to commit.

0% APR vs. Low-Rate Long-Term: Which Closes More Deals?

There is no universal answer, but here is the practical guidance: offer both and let the homeowner choose.

Some homeowners respond strongly to 0% because the no-interest pitch is psychologically clean. Others prefer a lower monthly payment even if it means paying some interest, and a 7 to 8 percent rate over 7 years often produces a lower monthly number than 0% over 18 months on a large project.

Example: A $30,000 project financed at 0% for 18 months requires $1,667 per month. The same project at 8% APR over 7 years requires $467 per month. For a homeowner focused on monthly cash flow, the longer-term option is significantly more accessible even though they pay more in total interest.

Present both options in your proposal. “Here is what it looks like at 0% for 18 months and here is what it looks like on a longer term with a lower payment. Which works better for your budget?” Letting the homeowner choose between options moves them from a yes/no decision to a which decision, and which decisions close at much higher rates.

One of the most common questions contractors have when they start offering financing is: what credit score does a homeowner actually need to qualify? The answer varies by platform, and the range across major contractor financing options is wider than most people realize.

Understanding how FICO scores map to approval odds helps you know which customers to put through financing, how to talk about it with homeowners who are nervous about their credit, and why multi-lender platforms tend to outperform single-lender options on approval rates.

What FICO Scores Mean in Plain Terms

FICO scores run from 300 to 850. Lenders broadly categorize them like this:

• 300 to 579: Poor credit
• 580 to 669: Fair credit
• 670 to 739: Good credit
• 740 to 799: Very good credit
• 800 and above: Exceptional credit

Traditional banks typically require 700 or above for unsecured personal loans at competitive rates. The contractor financing platforms operate differently, specifically because they are designed to serve homeowners who want to do a project now and may not have the credit score that a bank would want for an unsecured loan.

FICO Minimums by Platform

Platform	Reported FICO Minimum	Max Loan	Approval Rate	Notes
Hearth	550	$250,000	70 to 85%	18 plus lender network
Wisetack	540 to 550	$25,000	74 to 80%	Instant soft pull decision
GreenSky	~600	$100,000	70 to 80%	Minimum not officially published
EnerBank (Regions)	Not disclosed	Varies	80% (reported)	Strong approval rate across credit bands
Service Finance	~580	Varies	Not disclosed	Best for 0% promotional products
Mosaic	N/A (bankrupt)	N/A	N/A	Ceased new loans June 2025

Hearth’s 550 Minimum and Why It Matters

Hearth’s 550 FICO floor is one of the lowest among major contractor financing platforms. This matters in practice because a meaningful share of homeowner leads fall in the 550 to 600 range, particularly in markets with older housing stock and working-class demographics.

The reason Hearth can serve lower credit scores is their multi-lender network. When a homeowner applies, their application goes through 18 plus lending partners simultaneously, each with slightly different underwriting criteria. Lenders that specialize in near-prime and sub-prime borrowers sit in that network alongside prime lenders. A homeowner who does not qualify with a prime lender may qualify with a near-prime lender at a higher rate, but they still get funded and you still close the job.

The trade-off is that lower credit scores typically mean higher APRs. A 550 FICO homeowner who qualifies might receive an offer in the 25 to 35 percent APR range. Some homeowners accept that; others do not. Either way, you gave them the option, which is more than most contractors do.

Approval Rates at Different FICO Bands

Based on industry data from contractor financing platforms and lending research, here is a rough guide to what customers can expect at different credit levels when applying through multi-lender contractor platforms:

FICO Range	Approval Odds (Multi-Lender Platform)	Typical APR Range
550 to 579	40 to 55%	25 to 35.99%
580 to 619	50 to 65%	18 to 30%
620 to 659	60 to 75%	12 to 24%
660 to 699	75 to 85%	8 to 18%
700 to 739	85 to 92%	5 to 12%
740 and above	90 to 97%	4.9 to 8%

These are approximate ranges based on publicly reported data. Individual results vary based on debt-to-income ratio, employment status, loan amount, and other factors beyond FICO alone.

Soft Pull vs. Hard Pull: Why This Matters for Your Sales Process

Most contractor financing platforms use a soft credit pull for pre-qualification. Here is the difference:

Soft pull: Checks credit profile without triggering a hard inquiry. Does not appear on the homeowner’s credit report and has zero impact on their credit score. No SSN required in most cases. Gives a reliable preview of what the homeowner might qualify for.

Hard pull: A formal credit inquiry that shows on the credit report. May temporarily lower the credit score by a few points. Required when a homeowner actually accepts a loan offer and moves to funding.

For your sales process, the soft pull is everything. When you tell a homeowner “this does not affect your credit score at all, it just takes two minutes and shows you your options,” you have removed the main psychological barrier. Most of the resistance to checking financing is the fear of a credit impact. Eliminate that fear and the application rate goes up dramatically.

Hearth uses soft pulls for pre-qualification across their network. When you are in the room with a homeowner, pull it up on your phone and walk them through it together. The answer comes back in under 15 minutes and if they qualify, you can continue the conversation around a real monthly payment number rather than a hypothetical.

What Happens When a Customer Gets Declined

Even with multi-lender platforms and low FICO minimums, some customers will not qualify. Here is how to handle that situation without losing the relationship:

Option 1: Suggest a smaller scope. If the customer does not qualify for the full $20,000 project, ask if they would like to see what they qualify for on a $10,000 scope and handle the rest in a follow-up phase.

Option 2: Try a second platform. Different platforms have different underwriting criteria. A customer who does not qualify through Hearth might qualify through Wisetack or Service Finance. Running a soft check on a second platform takes another two minutes.

Option 3: Suggest alternatives. HELOCs, credit unions, and personal loans from the customer’s own bank may be options. Point them in the right direction and follow up in 30 days.

Option 4: Offer a payment plan directly. Some contractors offer in-house payment plans for smaller jobs. This carries risk and is generally not advisable for larger projects, but for smaller jobs it can keep the customer.

The Waterfall Lending Model

The best contractor financing platforms use what is called a waterfall model. When a customer applies, their application automatically gets evaluated by multiple lenders in sequence, from most favorable terms to least. If the prime lender declines, the application flows down to the next lender, and so on.

This is why platforms with larger lender networks tend to produce higher overall approval rates than single-lender options. Hearth’s 18 plus lender network is a meaningful advantage for customers with credit profiles that fall in the fair to poor range. A customer who would be a flat no at a single lender is a maybe at Hearth’s network because there are 18 different chances to find a match.

The Practical Bottom Line for Contractors

Do not pre-screen your customers. You are not a credit expert and you cannot eyeball someone’s credit profile. The homeowner in the modest house might have excellent credit and significant liquidity. The homeowner in the nicer house might have maxed credit cards and a recent late payment.

Offer financing to every customer above a certain job size threshold, say every job over $3,000 or $5,000, and let the platform determine eligibility. Your job is to make the soft pull feel easy and low-stakes. The application does the rest.

Hearth’s 550 FICO minimum means you have a reasonable shot at funding a wider range of customers than most platforms allow. At 70 to 85 percent approval rates across mixed credit profiles, you are going to fund the majority of customers who apply. That is a meaningful number when you think about how many deals per year you are potentially leaving on the table by not offering financing at all.

Every contractor who offers financing runs into the same objections. Homeowners have concerns about debt, interest rates, credit pulls, and whether this is too good to be true. Most of these objections are not deal-killers. They are questions dressed up as objections, and they have good answers if you have thought them through in advance.

Here are the ten most common financing objections you will hear and exactly what to say when you hear them.

Objection 1: “I Don’t Want to Go Into Debt”

This is the most common and the most emotionally loaded. The homeowner is not actually objecting to financing. They are expressing a value around financial independence, and you need to respect that while reframing the decision.

What to say: “That makes sense, and I get it. The way most of our customers think about it is that this is a fixed monthly payment on a home improvement that holds its value, not consumer debt for something that depreciates. You are not borrowing to spend. You are financing something that stays with the house. A lot of people find that feels different than credit card debt.”

Do not argue with the value. Acknowledge it and reframe what the financing actually represents.

Objection 2: “What Is the Interest Rate?”

This is a legitimate question, not an objection. The homeowner wants to know the real cost. Answer it honestly and then redirect to the monthly payment impact.

What to say: “The rate depends on your credit profile. Most of our customers qualify somewhere between 7 and 20 percent. The best way to know exactly is to run the soft check, which takes two minutes and does not affect your credit score at all. Then you will see your actual rate. Want to just pull it up now so you have the real number?”

Get to the application. The rate conversation is much easier once they can see a real offer rather than a hypothetical range.

Objection 3: “I Need to Think About It”

This is often not about financing specifically. It is about the overall decision. But financing can be the thing that gets them off the fence because it changes the size of the commitment.

What to say: “Of course. What part of it are you most uncertain about? Is it the scope of the project, the total investment, or something else?” Listen to what they say. If cost is the hesitation: “Would it help to see what the monthly payment looks like? Sometimes when people see the monthly number it makes the decision easier to get to yes on.”

If they still want time: “Totally fine. I will send you the proposal with the monthly payment scenarios included so you have it when you are ready to look it over.”

Objection 4: “I Would Rather Just Pay Cash”

Respect this. Some customers genuinely prefer to pay cash and that is a perfectly valid choice. But some customers say this reflexively without having thought through the alternative.

What to say: “Absolutely, that is great if you are in that position. A lot of our customers who could pay cash still choose the monthly option because it keeps liquidity in their account and the rate ends up being lower than what they earn on their savings. But if you prefer cash, that is completely fine. Just wanted to make sure you had seen the numbers.”

Then drop it. Do not push a cash customer toward financing. Respect the decision and move forward with closing on cash terms.

Objection 5: “I Don’t Want You Pulling My Credit”

This comes from a legitimate place. People know that credit inquiries can affect their score and they are protective of it. The good news is that most contractor financing platforms use a soft pull for pre-qualification.

What to say: “That is a soft check, not a hard inquiry. It does not show up on your credit report and it does not affect your score at all. You are just seeing what you qualify for. The only time there is a hard pull is if you actually decide to move forward with a specific loan offer, and even then it is a very small temporary impact. There is nothing to lose by just seeing the number.”

Objection 6: “My Credit Is Bad. I Probably Won’t Qualify”

Do not assume. Let the application do the work. Financing platforms like Hearth work with FICO scores as low as 550 across a network of 18 plus lenders, which means even customers with difficult credit histories have meaningful approval odds.

What to say: “You might be surprised. The platform we use works with a bunch of different lenders, some of them specialize in working with people who have had credit challenges. There is no cost and no credit impact to just check. Want to try it and see what comes back?”

Approval rates on multi-lender platforms are typically 70 to 80 percent, even across mixed credit profiles. Let the application run before you assume someone does not qualify.

Objection 7: “The Monthly Payment Seems Too High”

This is a solvable problem in most cases. The payment is a function of loan amount, term, and rate. Adjusting any of those changes the number.

What to say: “Let me see what this looks like over a longer term. If we go to 5 years instead of 18 months, the monthly payment comes down quite a bit. At 5 years you are looking at around $X per month instead of $Y. Is that range more comfortable for your budget?”

Also consider scoping the project down if it genuinely exceeds what the homeowner can handle monthly. A smaller approved project is better than a full project they cannot commit to.

Objection 8: “Can’t I Just Use My Home Equity?”

This is a legitimate alternative, not an objection you need to overcome. HELOCs can be a good option for homeowners who have equity and are comfortable using it. Do not talk them out of a smart financial decision.

What to say: “A HELOC can be a good option if you have the equity and want to go that route. The main difference is timing. Getting a HELOC set up takes a few weeks minimum and requires an appraisal in most cases. The financing I offer can get you an answer in a couple minutes and funds within a few days. If you want to use your HELOC, I am happy to work with that. If you want to move faster, this is quicker.”

Sometimes timing matters. Sometimes it does not. Let them decide.

Objection 9: “Is This One of Those 0% Interest Things Where They Hit You Later?”

This is a smart question and you should answer it honestly. There are two types of promotional financing: deferred interest, where interest accrues the whole time and gets charged back if you do not pay it off in time, and true 0% APR, where no interest accrues during the promotional period.

What to say: “It depends on the product. The 0% promotional option works like this: no interest for 18 months, no catch, as long as it is paid off in full by the end of the term. What you want to avoid is deferred interest products. Those are the ones where interest builds up in the background and hits you retroactively if there is a balance left at the end. The program I use has both options and I can walk you through exactly how each one works. The key is to read the terms before you commit.”

Honesty on this builds trust. The homeowner who understands how the product works is more likely to say yes than the one who is suspicious.

Objection 10: “I Am Going to Wait Until I Have the Money Saved Up”

This one is worth a gentle pushback because the math rarely works in the homeowner’s favor.

What to say: “That makes sense as a strategy. One thing to think about: if this is a roof or a water heater or something structural, waiting can end up costing more if the issue gets worse in the meantime. And the monthly payment we are talking about is probably close to what you would set aside in savings each month to get there anyway. The difference is you get the work done now instead of 18 months from now. Is there something specific making you want to wait, or is it mainly just the total number?”

If they have a real reason for waiting, respect it. If the hesitation is just general discomfort with the total price, the monthly payment frame often resolves it.

The Bigger Picture

Most of these objections are not objections to your work or your price. They are discomfort around money, a topic homeowners do not always feel confident discussing with someone they just met. Your job is to make the financing conversation feel normal, low-stakes, and helpful rather than like a sales tactic.

The contractors who are best at this treat financing as a customer service tool, not a closing mechanism. When you frame it that way, the objections mostly take care of themselves.

Most contractors bring up financing at the wrong moment. They sit with the homeowner, go through the whole project, lay out the total price, watch the homeowner flinch at the number, and then say “we do offer financing if you are interested.” By that point, the sticker shock has already set in and the homeowner is mentally looking for an exit.

Here is the thing: the timing and framing of how you introduce financing changes your close rate more than almost anything else in your pitch. Industry data backs this up consistently. Contractors who present financing before the total price fund roughly 42 percent of their jobs on financing. Contractors who wait until after the total price has landed see that number drop to around 21 percent. Same product, same customers, half the close rate just from sequencing.

This guide covers exactly how to pitch financing to homeowners in a way that feels natural, not pushy, and that consistently moves jobs forward.

The Core Principle: Lead with Monthly Payments, Not Total Price

Homeowners in 2026 are conditioned to think in monthly payments. They pay their mortgage monthly. Their car payment is monthly. Their phone, their internet, their insurance, all monthly. When you drop a $18,000 bathroom number in front of someone, their brain immediately starts asking “can I afford $18,000?” That is a hard question with a lot of anxiety attached.

When you lead with “most of our customers do this for around $300 to $400 a month,” their brain asks a different question: “can I afford $300 a month?” That is much easier to say yes to.

Seventy-five percent of homeowners say they want monthly payment options when hiring a contractor, according to data from Hearth’s customer research. You are not offering financing because you are desperate to close. You are offering it because most of your customers actually prefer it.

The One Question That Opens the Financing Conversation

You do not need a long script. You need one good question, asked early in the conversation before you ever get to price:

“How were you thinking about paying for this project?”

That is it. Ask it casually, as if it is completely routine, because it should be. This question does three things. First, it surfaces the homeowner’s financial situation without you having to guess. Second, it normalizes the idea that there are multiple ways to pay. Third, it gives you information you need before you structure the proposal.

If they say “we have been saving up,” you know cash is an option. If they hesitate, pause, or say “we were not sure,” you know financing is likely the path that gets the deal done.

How to Introduce Financing Early in the Sales Process

The goal is to mention financing before you get to the total price. Here are natural ways to do this depending on where you are in the conversation:

During the initial walkthrough: “Before I put the scope together, I want to mention that we work with a financing program so a lot of our customers pay monthly instead of all upfront. I will include some monthly payment options in the proposal so you can see both ways of looking at it.”

While building the proposal: Build your proposal to show both total price and monthly payment side by side. When you present it, lead with: “At $15,000, you are looking at around $833 a month for 18 months with no interest, or around $290 a month on a 5-year loan at a fixed rate. A lot of people find the monthly number easier to work with than the total.”

If you are already past the total price: Recover by pivoting quickly. “I know that number sounds like a lot all at once. The way most of our customers approach this is they look at it as a monthly payment instead. Would it help to see what this looks like on a monthly basis?”

Framing Monthly Payments on Different Project Sizes

Here is how to mentally convert project sizes into monthly payment language as a quick reference when you are in the field:

• $8,000 project at 18 months 0% APR: approximately $445 per month
• $12,000 project at 18 months 0% APR: approximately $667 per month
• $15,000 project at 18 months 0% APR: approximately $833 per month
• $20,000 project at 5 years at 8% APR: approximately $406 per month
• $35,000 project at 7 years at 8% APR: approximately $545 per month
• $50,000 project at 10 years at 8% APR: approximately $607 per month

Longer terms at reasonable rates often make large jobs genuinely affordable for homeowners who would otherwise say no. A $35,000 addition at $545 a month is a decision many homeowners can make. A $35,000 check is a decision fewer can make.

Getting the Application Into the Conversation Naturally

Once you have introduced financing and the homeowner is interested, the pre-qualification step needs to feel low-stakes. The best way to frame it:

“There is no commitment and it is a soft check, so it does not affect your credit score. It just shows you what you qualify for. Takes about two minutes. Want me to pull up the link?”

Pull out your phone or tablet and walk them through it right there. The longer you leave the application for them to do on their own later, the more likely it does not happen. Completing the pre-qualification in the room while you are there dramatically increases the odds they actually see an offer.

Handling the Upgrade Conversation with Financing

Financing changes how homeowners think about upgrades. When a homeowner is paying cash or writing a check, every upgrade adds to a number they are physically handing over. When they are paying monthly, every upgrade is just a small increment to a monthly payment.

Use this in your scope conversation: “The standard tile package is included in what I showed you. If you wanted to go with the porcelain instead, that adds about $2,400 to the project. On a monthly payment that works out to about $50 a month more. Would that be worth it to you for the look?”

Fifty dollars a month is a decision most people can make in the moment. Two thousand four hundred dollars added to a total is a decision that often triggers “let me think about it.”

What Not to Do When Presenting Financing

A few things that undermine the financing conversation:

Do not apologize for offering it. “I know this might not be for everyone but we do have a financing option if you need it.” This frames financing as a last resort. Present it as what it is: a tool most of your customers find useful.

Do not wait until the homeowner says no. If you only bring out financing after rejection, it signals you are desperate. Present it alongside the total price from the start.

Do not make it complicated. Lead with one or two payment scenarios. Three options at most. More than that creates decision fatigue and slows the conversation down.

Do not leave the application for later. Pre-qualify in the room. “Later” usually means never.

The Revenue Impact of Doing This Right

Contractors who address financial concerns proactively rather than waiting for them to come up generate on average four times the revenue of those who do not. Forty-two percent of jobs go through financing when it is presented before the total price, compared to 21 percent when it comes after. That gap, sustained over a year, is the difference between a good revenue year and a great one.

The pitch itself is simple once it becomes routine. Ask about payment early. Frame the project monthly before you frame it as a total. Pre-qualify in the room. Present the upgrade as a dollar-per-month increment. None of this requires a hard sell. It just requires being intentional about the sequence.

If you have been comparing contractor financing platforms recently, you may have noticed that the market looks different than it did even a year ago. Mosaic filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2025 and stopped originating new loans entirely. Sunlight Financial went through its own restructuring. The solar-first lenders that dominated headlines in 2022 and 2023 are largely either gone or diminished.

This matters if you are a contractor evaluating who to partner with for homeowner financing. Here is where each of these platforms stands as of early 2026 and how Hearth compares to all three.

The Quick Answer on Mosaic: It Is Gone

Mosaic filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on June 6, 2025, and ceased all new loan originations in May 2025. Solar Servicing LLC, a subsidiary of Forbright Bank, acquired Mosaic in September 2025. The acquisition specifically covers servicing the existing $8 billion loan portfolio. No new loans are being issued under the Mosaic brand.

If you are a solar or home improvement contractor who was using Mosaic, you need a new platform. Mosaic is not an option for new business.

The underlying causes were a combination of rising interest rates that made consumer solar loans more expensive, a 31 percent decline in solar installations in 2024, and the expiration of the federal solar tax credit (Section 25D) at the end of 2025. Several other solar-focused lenders are dealing with the same headwinds.

Sunlight Financial: Restructured but Operating

Sunlight Financial also went through bankruptcy, filing in October 2023 and emerging from restructuring in December 2023 with a new ownership consortium including Greenbacker Capital Management, Sunstone Credit, and IGS Ventures. As of early 2026, Sunlight is still actively originating loans.

That said, Sunlight Financial carries the baggage of a recent bankruptcy and faces ongoing class action litigation. A Minnesota attorney general lawsuit filed in March 2024 named Sunlight, GoodLeap, Mosaic, and Dividend Solar, alleging $35 million in hidden fees inflated into loan balances on more than 5,000 loans. That litigation is still active as of early 2026.

Sunlight Financial at a glance (as of early 2026):

• Dealer fees: 15 to 25 percent per transaction
• APR range: Starts around 3.99 to 7.99 percent depending on terms and credit
• FICO minimum: Approximately 600 to 650
• Loan maximum: Up to $100,000
• Primary focus: Solar installations, some HVAC and home improvement

EnerBank (Now Regions Home Improvement Financing)

EnerBank is the most stable platform in this comparison. It is owned by Regions Bank, one of the largest banks in the Southeast, and has approved over one million home improvement loans. Unlike the solar-focused lenders, EnerBank serves general home improvement broadly: HVAC, roofing, windows, doors, siding, remodeling, and plumbing.

EnerBank at a glance:

• Dealer fees: 0 to 16.4 percent depending on loan product
• APR options: 0% fixed (Zero Interest Loan), 2.99%, 4.99%, 6.99% fixed rates available
• FICO minimum: Not publicly disclosed, but 80 percent approval rate reported
• No annual subscription fee for contractors
• Approval speed: Decisions typically within 1 to 3 business days
• Strong contractor support and online document signing

EnerBank’s standout product is their Zero Interest Loan (ZIL), a true fixed 0% APR loan where interest does not accrue during the promotional period. This is genuinely different from deferred interest products that charge back interest retroactively if not paid off in time. EnerBank’s ZIL is one of the few clean 0% products in the contractor financing market.

EnerBank is particularly popular for storm restoration scenarios where homeowners need to cover insurance deductibles or pay for upgrades beyond what insurance covers. The 0% structure makes that conversation easy.

Hearth: The Multi-Trade Alternative

Hearth is built differently from all three of the above platforms. Rather than being a direct lender or a solar-specific platform, Hearth is a marketplace that connects homeowners to a network of 18 plus lending partners through a single application. This means a homeowner who does not qualify with one lender may still get funded through another.

Hearth at a glance:

• Cost to contractor: Annual subscription ($1,499/$1,799/$4,999 per year), zero per-transaction dealer fees
• APR range: Starts around 4.9 percent, up to 35.99 percent depending on credit profile
• FICO minimum: 550 (lowest among major platforms)
• Loan maximum: $250,000
• Loan terms: 2 to 12 years
• Credit pull: Soft only for pre-qualification
• Trades covered: Roofing, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, windows, siding, bathroom, kitchen, and more

Side-by-Side Comparison Table

Feature	Hearth	Sunlight Financial	Mosaic	EnerBank
Status (early 2026)	Operating	Operating (post-bankruptcy)	Bankrupt, no new loans	Operating (Regions Bank)
Dealer Fee Model	Annual subscription, $0 per job	15 to 25% per transaction	N/A	0 to 16.4% per transaction
FICO Minimum	550	600 to 650	N/A (defunct)	Not disclosed
Max Loan	$250,000	$100,000	N/A	Varies by product
APR Starting Point	~4.9%	~3.99%	N/A	0% (ZIL product)
Approval Rate	70 to 85%	Not disclosed	N/A	80% (reported)
Primary Trade Focus	Multi-trade	Solar primary	Solar (defunct)	Home improvement, HVAC, roofing
Legal Issues	Minor customer complaints	Active class action (MN AG)	Bankruptcy	None noted

Which Platform Makes Most Sense for Different Contractors

Solar contractors: With Mosaic gone, Sunlight Financial is the main remaining solar-specific option, but the legal headwinds and bankruptcy history are concerns. GoodLeap is another option in the solar space, though also named in the same Minnesota class action. Many solar contractors are diversifying to platforms like EnerBank that are not solar-dependent.

HVAC contractors: EnerBank and Hearth are both strong options. EnerBank’s ZIL product is excellent for seasonal upgrade selling where 0% financing closes the deal. Hearth’s multi-lender model helps with customers who have lower credit scores.

Roofing contractors: EnerBank’s ZIL is effective for storm restoration and insurance deductible scenarios. Hearth covers roofing explicitly and gives you higher loan limits. GreenSky is also widely used in roofing but charges higher dealer fees.

General remodeling contractors: Hearth is purpose-built for this. The multi-trade support, higher loan limits, 550 FICO minimum, and bundled software make it a natural fit for bathroom and kitchen remodelers, siding and window companies, and multi-trade operations.

What the Mosaic Collapse Tells You About Platform Risk

The Mosaic situation is a reminder that financing platforms are not all equally stable. Mosaic was processing billions in solar loans as recently as 2023. A year and a half later, it stopped originating entirely.

This does not mean you should avoid newer platforms or market-specific lenders. But it does mean it is worth understanding who owns the platform, how they are capitalized, and whether they are dependent on a single policy or market condition to survive.

EnerBank’s bank backing through Regions provides the most institutional stability. Hearth is venture-backed with Series B funding and over $500 million in funded projects. Neither has the existential exposure that came with being a pure solar lender during a solar market downturn.

The Bottom Line

Mosaic is no longer an option. Sunlight Financial is operating but has baggage you should weigh carefully. EnerBank is a solid, conservative choice with strong bank backing and a genuinely good 0% product. Hearth is the most flexible multi-trade option with the lowest FICO minimum and the subscription cost model that scales well for growing contractors.

If you are building a financing program for your contracting business in 2026, the most defensible approach is to pair Hearth as your primary platform (for its broad lender network and low FICO acceptance) with EnerBank as a secondary option (for their 0% ZIL product on specific deal types). That combination covers most homeowner credit profiles and gives you the best promotional financing tool for storm restoration and seasonal upgrade scenarios.

Hearth and Wisetack are both contractor financing platforms that let homeowners pay monthly instead of upfront. They target the same trades, the same job types, and the same types of customers. But they are built on completely different pricing models, and depending on your volume and how you sell, one will cost you significantly less than the other.

Here is a detailed breakdown of how they actually compare.

The Business Model Difference

Wisetack charges a per-transaction fee every time a customer finances a project. Their base rate is 3.9% per funded loan. If a customer uses promotional 0% APR financing, there are additional add-on fees on top of that: 4.9% for a 6-month promo, 6.9% for 12 months, and 9.9% for 24 months. You only pay when a loan actually funds, so there is no upfront cost or annual commitment.

Hearth charges an annual subscription. Their Pro plan runs approximately $1,799 per year (as of early 2026), with a one-time setup fee of $99. Once you are on the subscription, you can offer financing on unlimited jobs without per-transaction costs. Finance one job this year or five hundred, you paid the same annual fee.

This creates a specific break-even point. Below a certain annual financed volume, Wisetack’s pay-as-you-go model costs less. Above it, Hearth’s flat fee comes out ahead.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	Hearth	Wisetack
Fee Structure	Annual subscription ($1,799/yr most popular)	3.9% per funded loan
0% APR Promo Fees	Included or add-on ($399/yr for credit card option)	4.9 to 9.9% additional per loan
FICO Minimum	550	Approximately 540 to 550
Maximum Loan Amount	$250,000	$25,000
Loan Terms	2 to 12 years	3 to 60 months
APR Range	4.9 to 35.99%	0 to 35.9%
Approval Speed	Up to 15 minutes	Under 60 seconds
Approval Rate	70 to 85%	74 to 80%
Payout Timeline	2 to 3 business days	1 to 2 business days
Trustpilot Rating	4.3 out of 5	4.8 out of 5
G2 Rating	Not listed	4.6 out of 5

The Break-Even Math

Let us run the numbers on a real job to see where the two platforms cross over.

On a $12,000 bathroom remodel financed through Wisetack at the base 3.9% fee, the contractor pays $468. That is the cost for that single transaction.

With Hearth Pro at $1,799 per year, that same $12,000 job costs you $1,799 if it is your only financed deal of the year. Clearly Wisetack wins at low volume.

But scale up. At $45,000 in annual financed volume through Wisetack at 3.9%, you pay $1,755 in transaction fees, just barely under the $1,799 Hearth annual fee. Cross $46,000 and Hearth starts costing less. Finance $200,000 this year through Wisetack at 3.9% and you pay $7,800 in fees. Through Hearth you still paid $1,799.

The break-even is roughly $45,000 to $46,000 in annual financed volume at Wisetack’s base rate. Add promotional 0% APR options and that crossover happens even faster because Wisetack’s fees stack up on promo products.

Maximum Loan Amounts: Where Wisetack Has a Hard Ceiling

Wisetack currently caps individual loans at $25,000. That works fine for most repair and smaller replacement jobs, but it limits you on larger projects. A $35,000 master bathroom renovation, a $40,000 whole-house window replacement, or a major HVAC system install can exceed Wisetack’s ceiling.

Hearth goes up to $250,000, which covers virtually any residential project. There is a partnership between LendingClub and Wisetack announced in 2025 that may push Wisetack’s ceiling above $25,000 by mid-2026, but as of early 2026 the $25,000 cap still applies.

This matters practically: if you serve higher-ticket markets and commonly quote jobs above $25,000, Wisetack simply cannot serve those customers. Hearth can.

Approval Speed

Wisetack’s approval is almost instant. Homeowners typically get a decision in under 60 seconds through a text-based application. This is genuinely faster than Hearth’s 5 to 15 minute window and can be a meaningful advantage when you are sitting at the kitchen table and want to keep momentum in the sales conversation.

In practice, both are fast enough that approval speed rarely determines which deal closes. But Wisetack’s near-instant response does remove any awkward waiting period during an in-home presentation.

Promotional 0% APR Financing

Both platforms offer promotional 0% APR options, but the cost structures differ significantly.

Wisetack charges add-on fees per transaction for promo periods: 4.9% for 6 months at 0%, 6.9% for 12 months at 0%, and 9.9% for 24 months at 0%. These stack on top of the base 3.9% transaction fee. A $15,000 job on a 12-month 0% promo through Wisetack would cost you 3.9% plus 6.9%, or roughly 10.8% total, about $1,620 in fees.

Hearth includes a 0% APR credit card option as an add-on to their Pro subscription at approximately $399 per year extra. If you are offering promotional financing regularly, this is dramatically cheaper at any moderate volume.

Wisetack’s Strengths

Wisetack wins on simplicity and reviews. The contractor experience is highly rated, with a Trustpilot score of 4.8 out of 5 and G2 at 4.6 out of 5. The text-to-apply flow is genuinely simple for homeowners and does not require them to download anything or navigate complex forms.

Wisetack also reports an 80% plus approval rate, which is strong for a consumer financing platform. For lower-ticket service businesses, the 3.9% base fee is reasonable and the no-commitment model is appealing when you are just starting out.

The NPS score reportedly sits around 78, indicating contractors and homeowners both tend to have positive experiences with the actual product.

Which One Is Right for Your Business

Use Wisetack if you are just getting started with contractor financing and do not want an annual commitment, your typical jobs stay under $25,000, you primarily do service work and smaller repairs where the 3.9% fee is manageable, or you want the fastest possible homeowner approval experience.

Use Hearth if you finance more than $45,000 in projects per year, regularly quote jobs above $25,000, want to offer promotional 0% APR without per-loan fees adding up, need business software (quoting, contracts, invoices) bundled with financing, or want access to 18 plus lender partners to maximize approval odds across diverse credit profiles.

Many contractors start with Wisetack because there is no commitment and it is easy to set up, then add or switch to Hearth once their financed volume justifies the annual fee. Both platforms are legitimate and the difference is really just about matching the cost model to your volume and deal size.

The Bottom Line

Wisetack is the better starting point for smaller operations or lower-volume shops. Hearth is almost always cheaper for contractors who are actively pushing financing and routinely crossing $50,000 or more in financed projects annually.

Run your own numbers. Take last year’s financed volume (or a realistic estimate if you are just starting), multiply by 3.9%, and compare that to $1,799. Wherever that math lands tells you which platform saves you money.

When you start shopping for contractor financing, GreenSky and Hearth are two names you keep running into. Both let you offer payment options to homeowners. Both get funds into your account within a couple business days. Both claim to help you close more jobs.

But the way they charge you is completely different, and that difference can be worth tens of thousands of dollars a year depending on your volume. Here is what you actually need to know before you decide.

The Core Difference: How Each Platform Charges You

GreenSky charges dealer fees. Every time a customer finances a project through GreenSky, a percentage gets cut from your payout before you ever see the money. Standard loans typically run 3 to 6 percent. Promotional financing, including 0% APR programs, pushes those fees to 8 to 15 percent or more. On a $20,000 roofing job at 10 percent, you net $18,000 and GreenSky keeps $2,000.

Hearth charges an annual subscription instead. Their Pro plan runs around $1,799 per year (as of early 2026), plus a one-time $99 setup fee. You pay that flat annual amount and can offer financing on every single project without paying a penny per transaction. Finance $500,000 this year and you still paid $1,799.

Which model saves you more depends entirely on your volume. The break-even point sits somewhere around $36,000 to $45,000 in annually financed projects.

Full Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	Hearth	GreenSky
Dealer Fees Per Job	$0	0 to 26.6%
Annual Subscription Cost	$1,499 to $4,999 per year	No annual fee
FICO Minimum	550	Approximately 600
Maximum Loan Amount	$250,000	$100,000
APR Range	4.9 to 35.99%	0 to 29.99%
Approval Rate	75 to 85%	70 to 80%
Contractor Payout Timeline	2 business days	2 business days
Credit Pull Type	Soft pull (no credit impact)	Hard pull
Business Age Required	None listed	2 to 3 years minimum
Lender Network	18 plus lending partners	Direct lender
Trustpilot Rating	4.3 out of 5	1.6 out of 5

The Dealer Fee Math: Running Real Numbers

Let us actually run the numbers so you can see where the crossover point lands.

Say you are on GreenSky and averaging an 8% dealer fee on your promotional financing programs. Here is what that looks like at different annual volume levels:

• $100,000 financed: $8,000 in fees paid to GreenSky
• $250,000 financed: $20,000 in fees paid to GreenSky
• $500,000 financed: $40,000 in fees paid to GreenSky
• $1,000,000 financed: $80,000 in fees paid to GreenSky

With Hearth Pro at roughly $1,799 per year, you finance that same million dollars and pay $1,799. The difference is $78,201 staying in your pocket instead of GreenSky’s.

Now flip the math. If you only finance $15,000 in total projects all year, Hearth’s annual fee ($1,799) costs more than what GreenSky’s 8% would have charged you ($1,200). For very low volume operations, GreenSky’s pay-per-use model can cost less.

The crossover point sits between $22,000 and $45,000 in annual financed volume depending on which GreenSky fee tier you end up in. Above that threshold, Hearth wins on cost. The more you grow, the bigger the gap gets.

FICO Minimums: Who Actually Qualifies

Hearth accepts customers with credit scores as low as 550. GreenSky does not publish a hard minimum publicly, but industry reports consistently put their floor around 600. That 50-point gap matters more than it sounds in residential contracting.

A meaningful share of homeowner leads fall in the 550 to 599 credit range. If you are using GreenSky exclusively, those customers are automatically out of the conversation. On Hearth, they still get submitted through 18 different lending partners, each with their own underwriting criteria, and some of those partners work specifically with near-prime borrowers.

Hearth also uses soft credit pulls for pre-qualification. The homeowner can check what they qualify for without any impact to their credit score. This removes a major objection you hear in the field: “I do not want anything affecting my credit.” GreenSky typically requires a hard pull, which can suppress homeowners from even trying.

Loan Sizes and Term Lengths

Hearth can finance projects up to $250,000 with loan terms from 2 to 12 years. GreenSky caps individual loans at around $100,000. For most typical bathroom remodels or HVAC replacements this does not matter, but if you take on larger whole-home renovations or multi-phase projects, Hearth gives you more ceiling to work with.

The term lengths matter for monthly payment framing too. A 12-year term on a $50,000 addition brings the monthly payment down to a range that many homeowners can genuinely consider rather than declining outright.

GreenSky’s Regulatory History

Before you sign up for any financing platform, it is worth knowing the regulatory track record. In 2021, GreenSky entered a consent order with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau requiring $9 million in customer refunds and a $2.5 million civil penalty. The enforcement action centered on GreenSky allowing contractors to process loans on behalf of customers without proper consumer authorization.

GreenSky was subsequently acquired by Goldman Sachs and later sold to Sixth Street. The platform continues operating, but the complaint volume is notable. Their Trustpilot score sits at 1.6 out of 5 based on hundreds of reviews, with recurring complaints about deferred interest traps and billing disputes. Google reviews skew higher at 4.9, reflecting a split between merchants and end consumers.

None of this means GreenSky will cause you problems directly, but tying your customer relationships to a platform with a consumer complaint history is something to weigh.

Where Hearth Has Weaknesses

Hearth is not without its own issues. Reviews on Better Business Bureau and contractor forums point to a few recurring patterns: auto-renewal billing that catches contractors off guard, difficulty getting refunds after signing up and not using the platform, and inconsistent customer service when leads pre-qualify but never fund.

Some contractors report strong results with funded deals across a wide credit range. Others describe situations where pre-qualified homeowners were never contacted by lenders after submitting applications. The platform’s effectiveness varies by market and by how aggressively you push financing in your sales process.

The annual subscription also means you are paying regardless of usage. If you sign up, do not train your team on it, and let it sit, you can spend $1,799 for minimal results.

Which Industries Each Platform Serves Best

GreenSky has deep roots in HVAC and roofing, partly through manufacturer relationships and industry partnerships built over many years. If you are an HVAC dealer tied to a specific brand that has a GreenSky integration, switching may not make sense.

Hearth is built as a multi-trade platform covering roofing, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, windows, siding, bathrooms, and kitchens. The software side of the platform (quotes, contracts, invoices, digital payments) adds value beyond just the financing, which is why many remodeling contractors prefer it.

Which Platform Makes More Sense for Your Business

Hearth is the better fit if you finance more than $40,000 per year in projects, want a flat predictable annual cost, serve customers with credit scores in the 550 to 600 range, prefer soft credit pulls that reduce friction, or want business software bundled with financing tools. It is also better if you are newer and do not meet GreenSky’s 2 to 3 year business age requirement.

GreenSky may work if your financing volume is genuinely low and you want to avoid an annual commitment, you have an existing relationship that is already working, or you specifically need their promotional 0% APR programs and your margins can absorb the dealer fees.

Many high-volume contractors run both. Use one as primary and the other as backup for customers who do not qualify with the first. The platforms are not mutually exclusive and running two options meaningfully increases your overall funding rate.

Final Take

For most contractors who are serious about making financing a consistent part of how they sell, Hearth’s flat subscription wins on cost at any meaningful volume level. The math is not close once you cross $50,000 or $100,000 in financed projects annually.

Run your own numbers against last year’s financed volume. If you crossed $36,000, Hearth is probably already the cheaper option. If you are just starting to offer financing and want to scale without per-job fees compounding as your volume grows, Hearth’s model is built for that trajectory.

Most contractors who don’t offer financing don’t avoid it because they’re against it. They avoid it because they’ve never sat down and done the math on what they’re actually losing every month.

So we did it for you.

The setup: a typical bath remodeling business

Let’s use round numbers from a real contractor we work with. This is not a unicorn business. It’s a single-truck, two-crew operation in a Midwestern metro. Your numbers will vary but the structure is the same.

• Monthly leads (in-home appointments): 40
• Close rate: 30%
• Average ticket: $18,000
• “I need to think about it” rate: 30%
• Stalled deals that come back and close: ~15%

If you’re a contractor reading this, that probably looks pretty familiar. Now let’s run the math on what’s happening in those numbers.

What you’re closing today

• 40 appointments × 30% close rate = 12 deals/month
• 12 × $18,000 = $216,000/month in closed revenue

What you’re leaving on the table

Of the 28 appointments you didn’t close, the breakdown roughly looks like this:

• ~12 deals stalled out at “we need to think about it.” That’s 30% of 40.
• ~16 deals were no-fits, lost on price, lost to a competitor, or didn’t materialize for other reasons.

The 16 “real losses” you can’t easily recover. Those are sales process problems, lead quality problems, pricing problems. The 12 stalled deals are something different. Those are almost entirely affordability stalls. The customer liked you, liked the bid, and ran out of room in their checking account.

The financing-recovery math

Across the businesses we’ve worked with, contractors who properly implement financing see roughly 40–60% of their stalled deals convert instead of dying. That’s not a typo. The deals don’t change. The bid doesn’t change. What changes is that “the kitchen table conversation” is now about $258/month instead of $18,000.

Let’s be conservative and call it 50%:

• 12 stalled deals × 50% conversion with financing = 6 additional deals/month
• 6 × $18,000 = $108,000/month of recovered revenue
• $108,000 × 12 months = $1.29M/year

That’s the number. $1.29 million a year. One contractor, one truck, two crews. Left on the floor of homeowners’ kitchens because there was no financing on the table.

“But my customers don’t need financing”

This is the most common objection we hear, and it’s almost always wrong.

The data on home improvement spending in the U.S. is consistent: the average household has under $1,000 in liquid emergency savings. Even higher-income homeowners often have most of their money in retirement accounts, home equity, or investments — not in checking. A homeowner with a $400K house and a $250K HHI can absolutely not write a $20,000 check. Most of them have to choose between financing the project or pulling from savings they’d rather not touch.

You’re not deciding whether to offer financing. The customer is deciding whether to use you, or use the contractor down the street who does offer it.

The shift from price to payment

This is the part most contractors miss until they live through it. When financing is on the table, the entire conversation reframes:

• Without financing: “It’s $22,000.” → “Let me think about it.”
• With financing: “It’s $22,000, which works out to about $262 a month at 0% APR for 84 months.” → “Can we start in two weeks?”

Same project. Same price. Different psychology. You haven’t discounted. You haven’t dropped your margins. You’ve just translated the price into a number the homeowner’s brain can actually process.

30-day implementation playbook

1. Week 1: Sign up for a contractor financing platform. We use Hearth. No setup fees, takes about 20 minutes, you get a pre-qualification link your salespeople can use the same day.
2. Week 2: Train your in-home sales team to lead with financing as a normal payment option. Not a rescue plan, not the last move. Just another way to pay, listed alongside check and card.
3. Week 3: Run pre-qualifications during the in-home, before the price ever comes up. Customer sees their approved monthly number before they hear the project total.
4. Week 4: Compare your “I need to think about it” rate to the prior month. The drop will be obvious.

The deal you don’t see in the P&L

The hardest part of running a contracting business is that the most expensive line item never shows up on a P&L. It’s the deals you almost closed. The ones the homeowner liked but couldn’t pay for. They don’t show up as losses because you never invoiced them. But they cost you marketing spend, lead cost, drive time, and bid prep — all of which are sunk the moment you walk out without a signature.

Run the math on your own numbers. Then make the call.

Get Started with Hearth →