# HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit)

*Borrowing & Credit — Finicade finance glossary*

A HELOC is a revolving credit line secured against the equity in your home — you draw what you need, repay it, and draw again. Rates are usually variable and far below credit-card rates because your house is the collateral, which is also the entire risk: miss enough payments and the lender can foreclose. Most HELOCs run a 10-year draw period of interest-only payments followed by a 20-year repayment period, and the payment jump at that transition is the shock borrowers routinely fail to plan for.

**Also known as:** HELOC, home equity line of credit, home equity line

**Related terms:** [Home Equity](https://finicade.com/glossary/home-equity), [Mortgage](https://finicade.com/glossary/mortgage), [Collateral](https://finicade.com/glossary/collateral), [Revolving Credit](https://finicade.com/glossary/revolving-credit), [Loan-to-Value Ratio (LTV)](https://finicade.com/glossary/loan-to-value-ratio)

Source: https://finicade.com/glossary/heloc