Plan your project. Review your options.
AE Outdoor Living shares two independent third-party financing paths: HFS Financial, AE's featured first financing path, and Credit Union West as a second option to compare. AE Outdoor Living is not a lender and does not approve, originate, or service loans. Financing is subject to lender approval; rates, terms, monthly payments, and promotional offers vary by lender, applicant, project, and current lender programs.
Financing is not just for pools. You can explore it for a complete outdoor-living transformation — a complete landscape and hardscape plan, pool and spa, pavers, turf, outdoor kitchen, shade structures, lighting, glass fencing, and fire or water features — or for a selected portion of the work.
HFS Financial — see if you pre-qualify in about 60 seconds.
HFS Financial connects homeowners with participating third-party lenders for home-improvement and pool projects. HFS is not a lender, and neither is AE Outdoor Living.
The HFS inquiry takes about 60 seconds and uses a soft credit check, so checking your options does not affect your credit score. A soft-credit inquiry is not an application: a full application, underwriting, approval, and funding involve additional steps with the lender, and may include a hard credit inquiry.
Current HFS program information as of July 2026; subject to change. Not all applicants will qualify.
What to have ready
Check options first: you do not need to wait for a final signed AE contract or upload a contractor bid just to start the HFS rate check. A rough project budget is helpful, but HFS says a contractor bid or signed agreement is not required to start.
Check options first
Initial HFS rate check / pre-qualification: about 60 seconds, a soft inquiry, and basic personal/household information. This is not a loan application or approval.
If you continue to a full lender application
Have available; provide only when asked:
- Government-issued photo ID
- Recent income proof such as pay stubs, W-2s, or tax returns for self-employed applicants
- Current employment details; additional self-employment documentation if requested
- Social Security number for the formal credit check
- Bank-account information for funding after approval
- Homeownership details or documentation only if the participating lender requests it
Exact requirements vary by participating lender, applicant, and program. A deed, appraisal, and home-equity documents are not universal HFS prerequisites for the personal-loan programs described; those programs do not require home equity or an appraisal. Homeownership may be verified by the participating lender.
Estimate a payment for any AE project
Works for a complete outdoor living or landscape transformation and for a single scope — pavers, turf, an outdoor kitchen, shade, lighting, a pool or pool remodel, a glass pool fence, or a fire or water feature. Enter the amount, the term, and the rate a lender quotes you. This is a planning estimate, not an application, approval, or lender disclosure.
Check your debt-to-income ratio
Lenders often look at debt-to-income (DTI): your total monthly debt payments divided by your gross monthly income, shown as a percentage. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau explains DTI and notes that lender limits vary. Use this to understand the number before you talk with a lender.
Formula: DTI = total monthly debt payments ÷ gross monthly income × 100.
This calculator works only in your browser. It doesn't submit, save or send the amounts you enter, and nothing is added to the page address.
Include only the income of the applicant or applicants a lender would consider. Annual income is divided by 12.
Required monthly payments, not balances owed. Enter 0 if you have none.
For example, a payment from the payment estimator above. Don't also include it in your current debts.
Enter income and monthly debt payments to see your ratio.
This is an educational estimate, not an application, prequalification or guarantee. AE is not a lender. The lender you choose decides which income and debts count, and whether to approve you and on what terms. DTI doesn't include every household expense, so this number isn't advice about what you can afford.
What counts as a monthly debt payment?
Common examples include mortgage and home equity loan payments, auto loans, student loans, other loan payments, and credit-card minimum payments.
Lenders treat some items differently. Ask your lender how they handle housing or rent, child support or alimony, deferred student loans, and variable income such as bonuses or self-employment.
How to afford a $100K+ backyard.
How AE homeowners plan the monthly-payment side of a larger outdoor living project. AE shares two independent third-party paths — HFS Financial first, Credit Union West second — and AE is not the lender.
Take the 9-question planner
Answer a short series of questions about your project and preferences. The planner points you to the path worth reviewing first — it does not decide approval, rates, or which product is best for you.
Start the plannerCompare the two available paths
Review HFS Financial and Credit Union West — what each one is, and who decides your approval and terms — before you apply.
Compare both pathsSchedule an AE consultation
Prefer to walk through your project with AE first? Request a no-obligation consultation. AE will not discuss financing terms — those are handled directly with the third-party lender.
Request consultationAE is not a lender
Every financing program shown here is offered by an independent third party. AE Outdoor Living does not originate, approve, or service loans, and does not set rates, terms, or promotional offers.
The lender discloses everything
All rates, terms, fees, payment amounts, and promotional offers are set and disclosed by the third-party lender during application and approval. Always read the lender's disclosures before agreeing.
Programs and approval vary
Each lender has its own application, underwriting criteria, term options, and current programs. Approval, rate, term, and monthly payment are determined entirely by the third-party lender.
A second, independent path to compare against HFS Financial.
HFS Financial above is the featured path AE recommends reviewing first. The option below operates independently of AE Outdoor Living. AE does not approve, deny, or set the terms of any financing. To review specific rates, terms, or membership requirements, you'll apply or inquire directly with that organization.
Credit Union West’s current application prompts and disclosures control. Document and membership requirements can vary: follow CUW’s secure application and never send sensitive financing documents to AE.
Credit Union West
Independent, federally insured Arizona credit union (not AE Outdoor Living)
Arizona credit-union financing path. Membership eligibility, application, underwriting, rates, terms, and approval are determined by Credit Union West. AE Outdoor Living is not the lender and does not approve or set any financing terms.
Review this partnerAll financing is offered and approved by independent third-party lenders. AE Outdoor Living is not the lender. Rates, terms, monthly payments, approval, and promotional offers vary by lender, applicant, project, and current lender programs.
A transparent path — without AE making any lending promises.
- 01Plan your project with AE
We help you scope the project, review materials, and produce a real number — not a vague range.
- 02Review third-party options
Take the planner or browse partners. You decide which path to explore. AE does not approve or deny anything.
- 03Apply directly with the partner
All applications, disclosures, decisions, rates, and terms are handled directly between you and the third-party lender.
How AE invoices the work — pool and non-pool
AE's construction invoices and draws are separate from a lender's monthly repayment schedule. The draws below are how AE bills the build as milestones are completed. Any interest rate, term, or monthly payment comes from the independent third-party lender you choose. A combined pool and landscape project can be financed as one complete outdoor-living plan, while the signed agreement identifies which AE draw schedule applies to each scope. Your signed agreement and the lender's disclosures control.
Three payments tied to project progress
- 50%Deposit at approval
- 35%Project start or materials delivery
- 15%Balance at substantial completion
Applies to: Landscape, hardscape, pavers, turf, kitchens, fire features, lighting, fencing, structures.
Milestone draws — never one lump sum
- 15%Signing
- 25%After excavation
- 25%After steel, plumbing, and shotcrete/gunite
- 25%After decking
- 10%Before interior finish or prefab completion
New pool construction and major pool builds. Every draw is tied to a completed construction milestone you can see on site.
Ready to plan your project?
Estimate a payment with the numbers a lender gives you, or have AE scope your project first. AE is not a lender and cannot promise approval, a rate, or a term.
5% Community Service Appreciation Discount — Up to $1,500
AE offers 5% off an eligible project, up to a maximum total discount of $1,500 per construction agreement, for qualifying active-duty military members and veterans, first responders (law enforcement, fire, and EMS), teachers, and nurses.
Who qualifies
- Active-duty military members and veterans
- First responders (law enforcement, fire, and EMS)
- Teachers
- Nurses
How it works
- Applies to any otherwise eligible AE project or service division. No minimum project amount.
- 5% off the eligible project subtotal, capped at a $1,500 total discount.
- Standing benefit with no seasonal expiration date and no deadline.
- Eligibility verification is required before the written agreement is finalized. Eligibility is confirmed during follow-up — do not send documents through this website.
- One appreciation discount per construction or service agreement.
- No cash, refund, transfer, or unused value, and no retroactive application after the agreement is signed.
- The percentage is calculated on the eligible project subtotal before tax. The signed written agreement controls final eligibility, the included subtotal, and application. Permits, engineering, third-party and pass-through charges, financing charges, and other non-discountable items are excluded from the percentage calculation unless the written agreement expressly says otherwise.
May be combined with one otherwise eligible current AE offer or the standing design-to-build credit. Seasonal offers cannot be combined with one another.
One seasonal or standing benefit plus the appreciation discount is the maximum on a single agreement. Multiple promotions or credits cannot be stacked.
This appreciation discount is offered by AE Outdoor Living. AE is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by any employer, agency, school, military branch, healthcare organization, or government entity.
Full appreciation discount details
Ask About the DiscountAdvant-Edge Decorative Curbing & Landscaping, Inc. dba AE Outdoor Living may provide information about independent third-party financing options. AE Outdoor Living is not a lender, broker, loan originator, approver, or servicer of loans. Loan approvals, terms, rates, fees, payments, offers, underwriting, and servicing are handled by the independent third-party lender and may vary by applicant, program, credit profile, and lender requirements.
All financing programs displayed here are offered by independent third-party lenders or credit unions. AE Outdoor Living does not approve, deny, originate, or service any loan or extension of credit.
Financing is subject to the third-party lender's approval. Rates, terms, fees, payment amounts, and promotional offers are set and disclosed by the lender and vary by lender, applicant, project, and current programs. AE makes no representation about any specific rate, term, payment, approval, or promotional offer.
Information shown about each partner is summarized for convenience only. Always review the partner's own application materials and disclosures before agreeing to any financing program.