Net Worth
$385KTop 42%PeakWorth
$4.2M+$182KNet Worth
$385KTop 42%PeakWorth
$4.2M+$182KFI Age
50y 1m-11moA HELOC is a credit card backed by your house. Used wisely, it's a powerful safety net. Used carelessly, it's a path to losing your home.
Typical HELOC rate (2026)
~8.5–10%
Draw period
Usually 10 years
Repayment period
Usually 20 years
Rate type
Almost always variable
Draw-period payment
$225.00
Repayment payment
$269.92
Interest during draw
$27,000
Interest during repayment
$34,780
Total lifetime interest
$61,780
Total cost of $1 borrowed
$3.06
Effective APR
9.38%
Repayment schedule (after the 10-year interest-only draw period):
| Year | Payments | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $3,239 | $562 | $2,677 | $29,438 |
| 2 | $3,239 | $615 | $2,624 | $28,824 |
| 3 | $3,239 | $672 | $2,567 | $28,152 |
| 4 | $3,239 | $735 | $2,504 | $27,416 |
| 5 | $3,239 | $804 | $2,435 | $26,612 |
Estimates only. Excludes fees, escrow changes, and tax effects. For educational purposes — not financial advice.
During the draw period (typically 10 years), you can borrow and repay flexibly, often paying interest only. When the draw period ends, you enter the repayment period (typically 20 years) and the loan amortizes — payments can double or triple overnight.
Many HELOC borrowers underestimate the payment shock. This calculator shows both periods so you know exactly what you're committing to.
As a backstop emergency fund (cheaper than personal loans, available without selling investments), for staged home renovations, or for bridging short-term cash needs you can repay within the draw period. Pair with discipline.
Funding lifestyle expenses, treating it as 'free money,' carrying balances into the repayment period without a payoff plan, or borrowing at peak home values. Variable rates can also spike — what looks affordable at 8% is brutal at 11%.
A calculator alone tells you the payment. PeakWorth tells you what that payment costs your retirement — and how every change ripples through the next 30 years of your finances.
Your loan starts amortizing — monthly payments rise sharply. Plan to be paid off (or convert to a fixed loan) before this happens.
Many HELOCs let you convert all or part of your balance to a fixed-rate sub-loan. Useful if rates are rising.
As a secondary backstop — yes. As a replacement for cash savings — no. Banks can freeze HELOCs during downturns.
Learn guides, true-cost calculators, and audience playbooks across the PeakWorth network.
Decision guide
Should you tap your home equity?
HELOAN vs HELOC vs cash-out — the FI Age trade-off.
Decision guide
Should you open a HELOC?
Draw period, variable-rate payment, and the real risk.
Cost of
Carrying credit card debt
22% APR compounded — the silent FI Age killer.
Cost of
Buying a $1M house
Mortgage + taxes + maintenance + opportunity cost.
Built for
PeakWorth for physicians
Late start, high income, six-figure debt — modeled together.
Compare
PeakWorth vs SoFi Automated Investing
SoFi’s 0.25% member robo vs the planning layer above.
PeakWorth includes every loan calculator above — connected to your real income, expenses, and goals. Every number you change updates your live FI Age and lifetime projection.
