When used correctly, borrowing money through a home equity loan can be a strategic way to get ahead financially. Some people use the funds for home improvements to increase the value of their property ...

Right now, home equity levels are high for many homeowners across the nation. According to a recent Black Knight report, the average mortgage holder currently has about $199,000 in usable equity ...

U.S. homeowners are sitting on a record $34.5 trillion in home equity, and more are tapping that mountain of accessible assets. Home equity available to homeowners has risen by $600 million since the ...

Interest rates will be going down, but that doesn't mean you should wait if you want to leverage your home equity. Mike De Socio is a CNET contributor who writes about energy, personal finance, ...

Home equity loan interest rates, already on a slow but consistent decline for much of the last 18 months, fell to a new 2025 low this week. Now at an average of just 8.23%, home equity loan rates are ...

Home equity loans and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) have lower interest rates than credit cards. That can lead some homeowners to use them to pay down large credit card bills. But this method ...

Rachel Witkowski is an award-winning journalist whose 20-year career spans a wide range of topics in finance, government regulation and congressional reporting. Ms. Witkowski has spent the last decade ...

Rapid home price appreciation and low inventory mean American homeowners are sitting on substantial home equity. In the second quarter of 2025, mortgage holders carried $11.5 trillion in "tappable" ...

If you own more than one property, you can borrow against any equity you've built up to fund a significant expense. When you take out a home equity loan and use your home as collateral, it's important ...

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