Earlier this year, Discover Personal Loans worked with Philip, the self-described “DIY junkie” who showcases his frequent home improvement projects on his blog, Philip or Flop. Philip’s followers get to see the step-by-step process for each of his projects, which range from installing landscape lighting to revamping his kitchen’s range hood – and another 600,000 people follow along on his Instagram account.
Recently, Philip undertook a major project to add a new porch to the back of his home – and a Discover personal loan was one of the tools he used to help bring his dream porch to life. The existing open-air wood deck on the back of his home was only about 10 feet by 10 feet and could barely fit an outdoor dining table. Philip envisioned a much larger screened porch, complete with a sitting area, fireplace and eating space.
Philip and his wife regularly deposit a fixed amount into their home renovation account. While the porch project was initially budgeted for, he saw costs rise during the five-month project: “We saved A LOT for this porch but with the run up in building prices in 2021 we needed some extra to cover the gap that created,” he said. “We used our Discover personal loan to help us pay for some of the materials to complete the construction.”
Discover personal loans range from $2,500 to $40,000, which provided flexibility as the family budgeted for the increased price in materials. “We didn’t need a large sum of money where a home equity line might have been more useful,” Philip said. “And we didn’t want to use our credit card, so a personal loan really made the most sense.”
As a first-time personal loan borrower, Philip was surprised at how simple Discover Personal Loans made the experience. Discover lets customers design and customize a personal loan around their needs with a same-day decision in most cases, no origination fees, and flexible repayment terms.
“We have not taken out a personal loan before, but we love how easy this process was,” he said. “It was a 10 out of 10 experience. It was really fast and really easy to get through all the steps. Financial transactions can sometimes be confusing, and I felt that Discover’s process was designed really well.”
Discover’s personal touch also played a role in his ultimate choice of loan product: “I really liked that to finalize the loan in the last stage of the process I got to talk to a real person on the phone who could answer any of my additional questions,” Philip said. “Computer systems are pretty smart these days, but there is still nothing like talking to an expert on the phone.”
With the project’s completion secured by a Discover personal loan, Philip and his father worked hundreds of hours during weekends to make his vision of a dream porch become reality. The finished product looks like it was always part of the house, and a viewer would be hard-pressed to believe it was built by a DIY enthusiast instead of professional contractors.
Now the family has a beautiful backyard retreat where they can relax and enjoy a meal, a wood-burning fire, or a cup of coffee in the morning. And while the loan made it possible to finish the project, Philip says the whole process was so easy that the loan doesn’t cross his mind anymore.
“We are really glad that Discover gave us the option to set up automatic payments,” he said. “Now that we have those in place we really don’t even have to think about it again until it is paid off!”
Learn more about how you can use a Discover personal loan to fund your dream home improvement project. Go to Home Remodel Loans
To see Philip’s porch project from start to finish, visit https://www.instagram.com/philip_or_flop and check out additional projects at https://philiporflop.com.