It's the current value of your home minus your mortgage balance.

We finance up to 90% of your home’s value (90% loan-to-value ratio). Loans are subject to credit approval, underwriting guidelines and property occupancy.

A Home Equity Loan is distributed in a lump sum, while a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) works similar to a credit card. With a HELOC, you can access funds as needed for 10 years, paying interest only on what you use. A Home Equity Loan has a fixed interest rate and is helpful when you know exactly how much money you need. A HELOC gives you more flexibility to use funds when and if needed but has a variable interest rate.

There are typically no fees on our equity loans unless you request a full appraisal or we need to close through an escrow office to clear up an outstanding lien. All loan requests over $400,000 require a full appraisal at your cost.

There are several factors that go into determining the loan amount that we can offer. We look at available equity in your home, credit score and credit history, and debt to income ratios (monthly income versus monthly financial obligations such as your mortgage, loans or credit card payments).

Fixed-rate home equity loans are great if you want a locked-in rate and know exactly how much you want to borrow. If you prefer to make a set monthly payment and want to pay off your loan in a specific amount of time, a fixed-rate home equity loan may be a good choice. A variable-rate HELOC is great when you don’t know how much you’ll need to borrow, need access to the funds over a long period of time, or to have available for any emergencies that arise.

After you apply, we will determine the value of your home using our automated valuation model. We can lend up to 90% of your combined loan-to-value (if certain qualifications are met.) We calculate your loan-to-value ratio by taking into account the value of your home, how much you owe on your first mortgage, and how much you are looking to borrow with this new loan. If you think your home is worth more, you are welcome to request a full appraisal at your cost. The appraisal fee can be paid with loan proceeds.

It typically takes two to four weeks, depending on the type of loan and its complexity. Loan applications that require a full appraisal or outside escrow (to pay off existing liens) will require additional processing time.

Properties must be located in Washington, Oregon or Idaho.