What is the difference between a HELOC and a home equity loan?
Both borrow against the equity in your home. A HELOC is a revolving line: you borrow as you need, up to a limit, during a draw period, then repay, and the rate is usually variable. A home equity loan pays one lump sum with a fixed rate and fixed payments. Spring EQ offers both. Either way, your home is the collateral.
Are HELOC rates fixed or variable?
Usually variable, which means the rate and your payment can change. Some lenders let you convert part of the balance to a fixed rate: Bank of America and U.S. Bank do, and Figure's first draw is fixed. Chase's HELOC is variable for the full 30-year term. Ask what the rate cap is: Chase says 18%, U.S. Bank 18% and Bank of America 24%.
How much does a HELOC cost?
It depends on the lender. Among these five, two (Bank of America and U.S. Bank) say there are no closing costs, two (Figure and Chase) can charge an origination fee of up to 4.99%, and Spring EQ charges a lender fee without publishing the amount. Look at annual fees and early closure fees too. Compare fees as well as the rate, because the APR a HELOC shows may not include them.
What credit score do you need for a HELOC?
Among the lenders that publish one: Spring EQ states 640, Bank of America and U.S. Bank 660, and Chase 680. Figure does not publish a minimum on the page we read. A minimum is not a guarantee: lenders also look at your home's value, what you owe and your debts.
Are the sample rates here what I would get?
No. Where a lender publishes a sample rate, we show it with the lender's own assumptions and its date. Those assume strong credit and low loan-to-value, and HELOC rates are variable, so they change. Only an official offer from a lender is your rate.