Enter your home's value, existing mortgage balance, and how much of the line you plan to draw to see your available credit, interest-only draw payment, and the amortizing payment once repayment begins.
A HELOC is a revolving credit line secured by your home equity. During the draw period — commonly 10 years — you can borrow, repay, and re-borrow up to your limit, typically making interest-only payments on whatever balance you've drawn, which is why the "interest-only payment" above is calculated on your draw amount rather than the full available credit line. Once the draw period ends, the line converts to the repayment period — commonly 10 to 20 years — during which you make fully amortizing payments covering both principal and interest on the outstanding balance, and can no longer draw new funds.
A HELOC suits ongoing or uncertain expenses — like a renovation with a variable budget, or a financial safety net you may never fully use — since you only pay interest on what you actually draw, not the full approved line. A home equity loan suits a known, one-time expense, since it gives a fixed lump sum at a fixed rate with predictable payments from day one. See the Home Equity Loan Calculator, a companion tool, to compare that fixed lump-sum structure directly.
Typically variable, tied to a benchmark like the prime rate, meaning your real payment can rise or fall over the life of the line as that benchmark moves. This calculator assumes a fixed rate for simplicity so the draw-phase and repayment-phase structure is easy to see; actual payments on a real variable-rate HELOC will fluctuate with the benchmark, so treat the numbers here as a snapshot at today's rate rather than a locked-in guarantee for the full term.
You can no longer draw new funds, and your payment typically jumps from interest-only to a fully amortizing payment covering both principal and interest on whatever balance remains — often a significant payment increase, as shown by the difference between the two payment figures above. It's worth running the numbers on your expected balance at that transition well before it happens, so the jump doesn't come as a surprise to your budget.
Worked example: a $400,000 home with a $250,000 existing mortgage balance and an 80% max CLTV gives an available credit line of $70,000. Drawing $50,000 of that at 8%, the interest-only payment during the 10-year draw period is $333.33/month, for total interest of $40,000 over the full draw phase. Once repayment begins, amortizing that same $50,000 over a 20-year repayment period at 8% gives a payment of about $418.22/month — noticeably higher than the interest-only figure, since it now includes principal.
Prefer a fixed lump sum instead of a revolving line? See the Home Equity Loan Calculator. Want the amortization schedule on your primary mortgage? Try the Mortgage Calculator.