What financing options are normal for landscaping projects?

Good question — this is one of the things homeowners don't usually know until they're already in the process. Most small and mid-size contractors don't finance the job themselves. What we typically do is work with a third-party financing platform — Wisetack and GreenSky are the most common ones in the trades right now. The way it works: you apply through the contractor's link, get approved (usually takes a few minutes), and then the financing company pays us directly while you make monthly payments to them. Rates vary — 0% promotional periods exist but usually for shorter terms or with a fee built in. For a $6,500-8,000 project, 12-24 month terms at reasonable rates are realistic if you have decent credit. Some contractors also just accept credit cards and let you carry the balance yourself — simpler but usually a higher effective rate. What I'd ask any contractor: which platform do you use, what's the APR range, and is there a prepayment penalty. If they can't answer those three questions clearly, either they don't have financing set up or they haven't used it much. We use Stripe for deposits and progress payments, and can point customers to Wisetack for the full project amount if they need it.