Maybe they will not finance because they don't know enough about this unusual construction to be able to see if it is stable or will last long? To be financed the bank needs to agree on how much the home is worth and what shape the house is in.

That may be very difficult to determine if you live in an unusual home.

A bank will only finance a home for less than or equal to it's value and if you can't determine the value, well then, I guess they can't finance.

-renee

Unfortunately most lenders do not finance "dome" homes. The problem is getting an appraisal completed using 3 other "dome" homes that are close by, that sold in the last 3 to 6 months.

Are there other "dome" homes near where you are planning on buying?

These are usually very unique properties. It's very hard to figure out the value of a very unique property.

If this is what you really want, you'll need to probably put down a substantial down payment 40 to 50% and find a local lender who is familiar with the area, or that you have a banking relationship with.

It can be almost impossible to sell such a unique home. Compared to this, a split-level is a crowd pleaser.

There's a 5,000 sq ft one in my home town for sale, with 48 acres for $599,000. Go to www.joyrealty.com and then click on homes over $100,000. Pics of inside

What a strange place! Makes me think the mother ship has landed. To each his own. If you love it, buy it, but if you can't make the payment and the bank has to foreclose and sell it, I can see they might have a problem over a more normal looking place.

I know 3 families in the NW who built dome houses. None of of the houses could be sold after months and months on the market. One family took a big loss and moved and two decided they would have to stay where they were

Have you read about the problems that this type of construction may present? Here's a sample from Wikipedia:

The shape of a dome house makes it difficult to conform to code requirements for placement of sewer vents and chimneys. Off-the-shelf building materials normally come in rectangular shapes.

Windows conforming to code can cost anywhere from five to fifteen times as much as windows in conventional houses.

Air stratification and moisture distribution within a dome are unusual, and these conditions tend to quickly degrade wooden framing or interior paneling. Privacy is difficult to guarantee because a dome is difficult to partition satisfactorily. Sounds, smells, and even reflected light tend to be conveyed through the entire structure.

Dome builders find it hard to seal domes against rain, because of their many seams and because solar heat flexes the entire structure each day as the sun moves across the sky.

Sounds like fun, but also sounds like headaches.

It's a house with no right angles.

I can't imagine how difficult every day living must be. No flat walls to put bookcases on, etc. If you buid right angles into the structure you're going to eat up a ton of square footage.

I think the banks are trying to say, we won't finance them because they're WEIRD!

Now, the geo dome at EPCOT, THAT one I'd live in any day, if they'd let me...

To the OP:

I doubt I would buy a geodesic home myself, but for the record, R. Buckminster Fuller is one of my personal heroes. In fact, as I write this, I have a large, framed print of his "Dymaxion Airocean World" on the wall right above my desk.

He was ahead of his time 50 years ago, still is today, and IMO, probably still will be 50 years from now. Have you ever considered a less ambitious, geodesic vacation home?

Best of luck to you, whatever you ultimately decide.

I'd live in a tree house like swiss family robinson if I could but the reality is I have consider what it's going to be like a resale.. You may not have the patience for having trouble reselling it.

The problem is that they are very hard to sell. Not many buyers. A problem for the bank if you default and they have to foreclose.

You might want to check on some website that sell the dome homes. I think several of them lists mortgage companies that will finance dome homes. They may be willing to finance a purchase of a not-so-new dome home. Also find out the seller's mortgage company. Wonder if they charge a higher interest rate because it's not a "standard house"?

You probably will need a large down-payment. I'd be sure to get a really good home inspector and hopefully the bank or a dome builder can recommend one experienced with dome homes. We have 2 dome homes in our area and both are in disrepair. Wonder if the difficulty and cost of maintenance is the reason.

In SE Alaska, Juneau to be precise, I've seen the rotted remains of several less than 20 year old geodesic dome houses. They handled the rain (80+ inches/yr) OK, but the real problems occurred from the inside out - ventilation problems are inherent in the design. Cool to look at and an interesting concept, but I think perhaps fatally flawed in execution. I'd spend some serious time researching and finding people who have owned them and talking with them about maintenance.

I was all excited to build a geodesic dome home many years ago (1970's), until I did a lot of research and found out all the practical complexities (like fitting kitchen cabinets to walls that slope at different angles), noise carrying all over the open spaces, keeping them weather tight, etc. I still think they're cool, but glad I decided to not build one. Take a look at what many people want or settle for: bland, ticky-tacky boxes. Many of us want our houses to be like McDonalds...they're all the same wherever you go. People want familiarity, not novelty. If you look at some of the small things people agonize over in other forums here (oil-rubbed vs. brushed nickel doorknobs, etc.), you'll see that a geodesic dome is way beyond most people's comfort level.
Don't get me wrong, living in a geodesic dome would be a great adventure. Just don't expect to be able to sell easily or get back what you put into it.

Hey how about a yurt?

Or just build a dome garden shed and live in a mc donalds like the rest of us. Be glad your region has some architectural flair at all unlike Florida where everyone lives in an identical concrete bunker.

What about a Monolithic Dome home? They're shaped like a dome, but they're totally rounded, they don't have the flat edges like a geodesic dome.

They can be totally round, or tall & oblong. You can build just one, or connect a series of them together.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rainbow Dome Home In Sedona

If you re still interested in dome home living, check out this website www.northgeorgiadomehome.com

I'd be curious to hear what you decided about dome home living.

I have heard it is hard to get homeowners insurance on these because they are not standard construction. Cannot verify this though it seems very possible.

We bought a Geodesic a year and a half ago. The house was 30 years old and needed some paint inside and out. The financing was a bit of a challange but didn't take long to obtain and we didn't have a problem with insurance. I've attached a link to my blog about our geodesic that includes photos.

Here is a link that might be useful: Geodesic Living

I just bought a dome home. Love it. Don't let anyone discourage you.

We have hot water heat and our bills are really low. My mortgage company had no problem loaning the money on the home. In fact, I got a va loan and got $127 back at closing with no down payment.

These geodesic domes are NOT a new idea. They were also a fad in the early 1970s and cropped up a bit again in the late 80s

Note the word "fad"

"rationale lenders are saying for not financing them"

Rationale is pretty simple If they end up with the house in foreclosure, the odds of them being able to find a buyer for an off-beat not-popular type of house are soooooo slim. They would be sitting on that sucker forever.

Lenders -other than local banks - really aren't doing doublewide trailers (oops manufactured housing) either.

Lenders aren't dong condotels either - the buy the condo and rent it out when you aren't using it kinda place.

We have at least one residential geodesic dome in our state that I know of - friends of mine owned it - they sold it when their son died, and it seemed to go off the market quite quickly (rural Manitoba, Canada). So I do think there is a market for them.

Thomas can you tell me who fiananced your home? We are have had several people wanting to buy that can't find a lender and the last one was interested in getting a VA loan. We are in Washington state.

rlar7 can you tell me who you got your financing through? We have plenty of people wanting to buy, but having a hard time finding a lender.

I just purchased a geodesic dome and I'm finally moving in! I too had trouble finding a lender with over 55% down and a high credit score. Find a local banker or credit union that does appraisals on unique homes. I succeeded with River Valley after 3 other lender attempts which resulted in a 5 month adventure. I DON'T recommend Wells Fargo and you'll see them advertising on all the dome sites. He is a big waste of your time and misleading! I just couldn't give up! The home is awesome! Going to be a blast decorating!

As an appraiser, it was always a joke among appraiser's that the definition of hell was trying to find comparable properties for a geodesic dome. That's the problem. Not the structure. It's just that there aren't enough of them to do a proper job making a determination of valuation. There may be two or three appraisers in the U.S. that might have enough expertise to perform this type of appraisal. That's why lender's can't deal with them.

HI Sherry, thanks for your contribution here...I have been looking to procure a land acquisition-construction-to perm loan to build my dome and am running into all the usual issues. Lots of enthusiasm and not enough comps for the underwriters at the final stage. I currently live in and want to build in Los Angeles. I too have been advised to start investigating a more "piece-mealing" approach to this process w local banks. Simultaneously I have also begun a preliminary dialog w Mr. S.K. at Wells Fargo for the final take out loan portion should I get the land & construction loans in place first with other lending institutions. If I could trouble you with 2 questions it would be greatly appreciated:

1. Can you recommend some smaller "mom & pop" type banks I should speak to that you have had luck with for any portion of the lending and...

2. What should I be aware of specifically with Mr. SK? So far he has been nothing but helpful and enthusiastic. I am the first to admit I am a complete novice, first-timer here so I don't know where he may be misleading me or not. I of course am so excited to build and live in my dome that I am willing to give anybody with the slightest bit of interest the benefit of the doubt. However I of course I don't want to get myself in any financial trouble or in over my head.

Any more advice in the right direction would be GREATLY appreciated.

Thanks again, [[[roger]]]

We built our dome home in NM in 1984-86 and lived in it until 2015. After '08 we knew we were facing a struggle to sell it (moved to a new area) so we carry the papers. Sadly the new owners, who LOVE the house, have to move due to a job situation. With the economy and housing market getting better we, too, hope they can sell. The issue is financing and appraisal. My question: okay there are no other domes near, but it's a 2-story home, 2400 sq ft - what is the problem?? What is a bit unique about our former dome is that my husband wisely built it on a 2.5 foot stem wall, so it is not flat on the ground or slab. It make it more functional and stately, and PLENTY of flat walls for furniture. Anyway, best of luck!

any one considering a 'dome' home, rather than build a 'geodesic one, consider the dome homes that are made/developed by a company in Italy, TX (they use sprayed on gunite). These things are tornado and hurricane proof.

They are 'white elephants' - avoid.

I understand that the builder would take a hit, but why would the subsequent owners IF these houses are valued according to what people will pay for them? From the above comments, I would expect the cost to be substantially less, and I would also expect that there would be a good no. of buyers looking for low cost affordable housing who are OK with the design . As yall keep saying in this forum - if its not selling the cost is too high.

A large component of what determines a home's value is the availability of financing. or the lack of it. The easier to finance a home, the more the market will climb, as we saw to the run-up of 2008. And vice versa...

HU - that's a great story. The bottom line is if something is really odd - it's odd for a reason. Then, as you say, since it's odd, you have all sorts of problems getting conventional things: like a mortgage or insurance.

HU-

Thanks for the thoughtful and painful explanation about your experiences. Decades ago I was enamored with geodesic dome homes, and seriously studied the techniques required and started some initial designs. However, extraneous circumstances came into play and I never was able to proceed with my plans. It wasn't until years later that I realized the true complexity of such builds and recognized it was probably fortunate for me that I never got farther than I did. I still think they are a terrific concept, but your personal story has cured me of my nostalgic thoughts.

I still suggest the Monolithic Dome Homes out of Italy, TX - there can be a stem wall so one has actual straight (plumb) walls, and they teach folks how to build the homes - doesn't have to be 'round', can be a variety of shapes, gunite for the roof and sides.

we just bought one, Belair can't grasp the roof, but then again they can't grasp a wood stove either.........

We just bought a dome home in Ontario, Canada in 2020, we actually had to pay over asking price there were so many people bidding. We've had a small issue with Belair Insurance our insurer on our current home and truck, they can't grasp the concept of a dome, but they also are against the wood stove which we are not heating with but they feel it should be removed. We simply asked the current owners who their insurer is and we will be going with them. I fell in love, but then when I researched I realized how energy efficient they are and that has been proven by the current owners heat and hydro bills, they are hurricane resistant not that we really have to worry to much in Ontario, they can withstand strong earthquakes, the roof on ours will never have to be replaced, they don't leak if installed properly.........All I can say is do your homework if you are considering buying or building one

I just brought some earth shoes.