Pros and cons of home equity loans

written by: Denis Dowes; article published: year 2006, month 07;



In: Categories » Legal and finance » Loans and mortgages » Pros and cons of home equity loans

What is a home equity loan?

Practically, a home equity loan is a secured loan. As a simple explanation, the equity represents the difference between the amount owed with your mortgage and how much your home is in worth.
For instance, if the mortgage is for $100,000 and your home is for $150,000, then you may take a loan for the remaining amount of $50,000. The additional value of your home means exactly the security on your loan – the home equity loan.
Sometimes, home equity loans are called second mortgages and are very popular with homeowners. In 2005 there was cashed out around $204 billion in home equity loans in the USA.

Things to take care of when applying for a home equity loan

If you intend to pay off the home equity loan too early, some loans get steep penalties and a typical penalty is the 10 percent of the total amount that has been borrowed. You have to make sure it does not exist any penalty enforced by the lender to prepay your home loan. You must take care to loans whose interest you are paying monthly and which are then hit with a huge payment up to the end of the loan term – so called the “balloon loans”. Try to avoid them.
Remember, you have the legal right your loan to be cancelled within 3 days of taking the loan out, and all the application fees and/or any additional charges will be back to you.

Advantages of home equity loans

Speaking about advantages, here can be distinguished the tax benefits that are really significant with this type of loan. The interest paid on the equity loan may be tax-deductible while the closing costs and all additional fees for the loan are paid or can be rolled over into the loan itself. In order to avoid mistakes, try to consult with your tax advisor. The interest rates on these loans are competitive because of the reasons above.
You can pay off the loan in a short period of time if you have many plans. Rather than just paying the min. payment, you can pay more to the principal - just like you can do with your mortgages. The cash obtained from loan can be used for whatever you need: Holidays, home improvement, college tuition costs etc… All these are popular justifications why it’s recommended to take off a home equity loan.

Disadvantages of home equity loans

You get the risk to lose your home if you cannot make the monthly payments on a home equity loan and this is just as with the actual mortgage. If the value drops too much, you may finally owe more on your home than it is actually worth. If you intend to get a career change and a possible lower income due to the situation, then a home equity loan is not the right choice.
The home loan has also associated some fees and various charges when taking it out and these amounts can be incorporated into the total loan amount. These charges usually include the home appraisal fee, the property application fee, the title fee and several taxes related to your mortgage.

And finally, one but not the last thing you may want to consider is a home equity line of credit rather than a home loan because the main advantage is: you are paying interest on the amount you use. For example, if you have a line of credit of $10,000 but you only use $4,000, then the interest must be only paid on the $4,000.

legal disclaimer

1) Our website is not responsible for the information contained by this article as well for any and all copyright infringements by authors and writers. E-articles is a free information resource. If you suspect this article for any copyright infringements, please read the Terms of service and contact us to investigate the problem.
2) The E-articles directory team is not responsible for inaccuracies, falsehoods, or any other types of misinformation this tutorial may contain and will not be liable for any loss or damage suffered by a user through the user's reliance on the information gained here. Please read the Terms of service

Useful tools and features

Translate this article to...    Send this article to you or to a friend

Link to this article from your page   
If you like this article (tutorial), please link to it from your web page using the information above. Linking to this page, this is the only way to help us improve our service, the same time providing your visitors with a way to improve their online experience.

related articles

1. Acquire Funds at the Right Time with No Fax Payday Loans
Summary: The article discusses all about no fax payday loans. What are no fax payday loans, where and how you should search to find the best rates? For all this and lots more, read the article. Whether it is annoying car rattle, repair of your home, educational needs of your child or grave issue like accidental injury to some of your loved one, no fax payday loans can be used for all. Probably, at this point you do not have finances to spend on any of your requirement. It may rob you of your mental peace and serenity. ...

2. Hassle free Financial Assistance: No Fax Payday Loans
Payday loans are worth mentioning for offering prompt financial solution to borrowers and are available in the loan market at easy loan conditions. Moreover today you are not required to fax your documents to lenders while applying for payday loans. These loans can also be termed as no fax payday loans. No fax payday loans are generally short term loans which promise to assist you with necessary amount to counter any emergency. Here the loaned amount in no fax payday loans are small and the repayment duration is also of short...

3. B2L MORTGAGES ~ UNCOVERED
Importance Firstly, why is it so vital for landlords to find the right mortgage? It’s a fact that the mortgage is by far the largest outgoing, dwarfing any other expense. Therefore, if you can cut even just a quarter of a percent off the rate you pay; this can save you tens, if not hundreds of pounds every month. When you have a portfolio this can easily amount to thousands every year. The buy-to-let mortgage industry To operate shrewdly in any business environment you need to un...

4. How Can A Loan Help You
Money, if not every thing, is something that you cannot live without. Don’t you want to eat well, look good, live tastefully, enjoy luxuries etc? All these things are money-driven. You cannot even contemplate them without money. Some people are conservative in nature and they keep on saving regularly for a rainy day. Some people have ‘me now, pay later’ attitude and they believe in borrowing the money as and when needs arise. However, you should be cautious not to overindulge in borrowing. A ...

5. Buy to Let Motgages Explained for UK Landlords
You’re lucky! The U.K. has one of the most competitive and flexible mortgage markets in the world. There is certainly no shortage of choice. The careful planning of your financial strategy in terms of the type of mortgage you select is vital if you are to maximise your overall investment returns. For instance, don’t get locked into a 5 year fixed term mortgage with high redemption charges if you think there is any chance you may want to or need to sell within a couple of years. Research your mortgage options and have a c...

6. Alternative Loan Types for UK Property Investors
I’ve already looked in depth at the subject of Mortgages. This is the type of funding that landlords typically use to purchase property. However, from time to time it may be prudent or necessary to use other types of loan. What other kinds might be necessary? Bridging Loans A bridging loan is one that is taken out as a temporary measure as a means of raising finance for a short term (less than 6 months) after which a longer-term arrangement is found. This could be where a property is being acquired at say ...

7. Information about Warehouse Receipts Finance
Warehouse receipts are a crucial element for risk mitigation, enabling a financier to lend to a borrower, who wants to finance the shipment of commodities for sale or purchase. Using warehouse receipt finance, a bank, or trader, relies on goods in an independently controlled warehouse to secure financing. Usually providing (among many things) there is an off-taker and that there are other forms of recourse (the borrower?s balance sheet for example) banks will lend against commodities stored in a reliable warehouse and which have been properl...