What is Home Equity Loan?

What is Home Equity Loan?

A home equity loan is a form of ‘consumer debt’ that allows homeowners to avail loans against the equity in their residence. This equity is kept as the collateral to avail the loan. This type of loan can be accessed against both residential and non-residential property. It is also termed a second mortgage, a home-equity installment loan, or an equity loan. The amount for the loan is calculated based on the current market value of the property. To avail of this type of debt, one should have an outstanding credit history with considerable individual loan-to-value ratio and combined loan-to-value (CLTV) ratios....

How a Home Equity Loan Work?

1. Mortgage: The title of ‘second mortgage’ is defined as the home equity loan is related to a mortgage and the equity in the property acts as the collateral for the lender. The traditional home equity loans have a fixed term as that of the conventional mortgages. The borrower needs to repay the principal and interest during the fixed tenure and if the borrower defaults in repaying, the home could be sold to the lender to cover the outstanding debt....

Advantages of Home Equity Loan

1. Easy Source of Cash: Home equity loans offer an easy source of cash and can be a beneficial instrument for responsible borrowers. With fixed source of income and capacity to repay the loan, low-interest rates and feasible tax deductions make the home equity loans appear to be a good measured choice....

Disadvantages of Home Equity Loan

1. Easier to Fall into Debt: If the borrower falls into the trap of the perpetual cycle of spending, borrowing, spending and then drowning deeper into debt, then lenders reload the loan amount by paying off existing debt and disbursing only the remaining credit to the borrower....

Home Equity Loan Rates in 2024

Most of the home equity loans are listed based on the industry base rate or the prime rate. Although, lenders might add an extra amount to determine their final offer rate, the prime rate represents the lowest credit rate which the lenders offer to attract borrowers. Suppose, a lender puts an extra rate of 1.45% to the prime rate of, say 7.75%, than the home equity loan rate for the borrower would be 9.20%....

Home Equity Loan Requirements

Different lenders have different requirement for offering home equity loans. Generally, the borrowers should fulfill the following conditions:...

How Much can you Borrow with a Home Equity Loan?

Generally, a home equity loan allows one to borrow around 80% to 85% of the CLTV (combined loan-to-value) ratio. This ratio is actually the difference between the market value of the house and the amount of borrowings. This CLTV ratio includes the total of the mortgage balances, existing HELOCs, existing home equity loans and the newly applied home equity loan and cannot be more than 90% of the estimated home value. Sometimes, lenders offers 100% of the CLTV ratio for borrowing....

What can you use a Home Equity Loan for?

A home equity loan is best used for improvement, renovation or repair which will appreciate the value of the house. In US, as per 2021 American Housing Survey report, an average amount sourced from the home equity loan was $11,240 for series of housing projects. An amount of $35,000 was used for kitchen renovation by the houseowners as per the report....

Home Equity Loans vs. HELOCs

Usually, home equity loans are fixed rated while only some of HELOCs (Home Equity Lines of Credit). The basic difference between these two are tabulated below:...

FAQs

1. If you apply for a Home Equity loan, will you be tax benefited?...