2 Legit Companies That Will Give You Fast Cash (Not a Loan), as an Investment in Your Home
By The Money Manual Getting money for a big ticket item without taking a loan based on your home’s value is an option that should always be considered. Here are two.
Needing a big-ticket lump sum of money usually is just that – a need. Whether it’s to invest in education, health issues, starting a business, debt consolidation, a big wedding, or any emergency financial reality, it’s always pressing.
Anybody who owns a home has options, because they have an asset that is also usually the biggest big-ticket item in life. This means, of course, that those options need serious scrutiny, based on benefits, costs, and potential costs.
Here we look at a couple of the usual options, then provide a serious alternative that is not a loan, does not mean assuming debt, and instead involves allowing an investor to invest in your home’s value – in exchange for providing you with a big-ticket lump sum of money.
Home Equity Loan (HEL)
Your home’s “equity” is the amount your home is worth right now, minus the amount of existing mortgage. With a standard home equity loan (HEL), you will usually receive a fixed interest rate (one that doesn’t change), with the understanding that if you cannot keep up payments you could lose your home.
You can also find yourself looking at upfront fees and costs; and, of course, varying periods of time over which repayment must be completed (the longer the period, the less your monthly repayments), depending on the deal you strike based on varying factors. A Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC), allows you to borrow amounts as required and pay interest on those sums. This method can sometimes seem more manageable in the early stages than the later stages.
So what’s a better alternative?
Hometap
If you need cash — and maybe you need a lot of cash — the prospect of taking out a traditional loan with a high interest rate can seem really daunting and really expensive.
If you own a home, there is another option that you probably don’t know about to get cash — a home equity investment.
Not to be confused with a home equity loan — which you have to make monthly payments on — the company Hometap will invest in your home giving you a lump sum of money in exchange for a share of its future value.
Again, this isn’t a loan — when you sell your home down the line Hometap takes a share of the proceeds.
Here’s exactly how it works:
- Request an investment via Hometap (up to 25% of your home’s value or $600,000 max)
- If Hometap agrees to take a stake in your home it will send you the money (deducting 3% closing fees)
- Once you have the money do whatever you need to do with it like pay off credit card debt or do that kitchen renovation you have been dying to do for years
- When you ultimately sell your home, Hometap gets an agreed up percentage of your home’s value (and don’t worry if the value of your home goes down Hometap will actually share in the depreciation, so no need to worry about being penalized)
If you need cash and own your home, this is definitely something to consider, because you won’t be taking on debt.
Consider Hometap today to get cash without taking on debt.What Is Hometap?
Hometap is a financial services company that allows homeowners to access equity without taking out a loan.
In place of giving homeowners a loan to tap into their home equity, Hometap offers them a home equity investment.
Just like home equity sharing or home equity agreements (HEAs), members won’t have to worry about monthly payments or hefty interest rates.
Hometap can pay up to 25% of a home’s value in cash, or a maximum of $600,000.
Homeowners get up to 10 years to settle the investment agreement. The agreement is usually settled when the homeowner sells their home; the homeowner also has the option of buying out of their Hometap agreement.
With Hometap, you should expect to pay 3.5% of the investment, appraisal fee, and title charges, as well as government recording and transfer fees.
Note: Hometap enjoys a 4.9/5 star-rating on Trustpilot based on almost 5,000 customer reviews and is a Trustpilot verified company.
Unlock
Looking for a faster way to get the cash you need to cover a big expense without putting it on a credit card or applying for a loan and getting into debt? Well, if you’re a homeowner, you can get that cash by tapping into your home’s future property value right now with Unlock.
Unlock is a home equity sharing company. It helps homeowners use the equity they have in their homes to obtain large sums of money quickly without having to take out a loan or open a line of credit of any kind. Instead, the company will offer you a calculated amount of cash in exchange for a percentage of the proceeds you get from the sale of your house in the future (this part is key).
How it works:
- Unlock offers cash amounts ranging between $30,000 and $500,000 — the amount is determined by your home’s value and how much you still owe on it
- Once you have the money Unlock has agreed to give you, it’s yours to do whatever you want with
- There are no qualifying income requirements, but a FICO score of at least 500 is needed to apply
- An Unlock contract has a 10-year term, during which a homeowner can sell their house or buy out Unlock’s share to terminate the contract
The best part about this method is that since you’re not borrowing money, there’s no risk of debt. If you need a big chunk of cash quickly this is very cost-effective.
Important to note, Unlock is only available in the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, and Washington state.
Get the cash you need with help from Unlock todayWhat Is Unlock?
Unlock is another provider of a home equity agreement (HEA), based on the same model above.
The first step is to arrange a “home equity agreement.” This is a 4-step process:
Step 1: Use Unlock’s website to get an estimate of how much equity you could take out of your home. Unlock gives homeowners access to up to $500,000.
*No obligation; quote within a few minutes.
Step 2: Apply online. After you submit your application, Unlock will contact an independent third party to complete an appraisal and title report, which will determine your property’s current value.
Step 3: Receive an offer, decide how much equity you’ll take out, and sign the necessary documents. You’ll also have to pay a closing fee (4.9% of the money you’ll receive) and the cost of the independent appraisal.
Step 4: Receive the funds by wire transfer within a few days.
So that’s the fun part – getting your money!
But how will you pay them back?
When you sign the agreement, you’ll agree to share a certain percentage of your home’s future value.
Unlock also offers 10-year terms. This means you have ten years to settle your agreement, essentially by buying Unlock out by paying them their agreed share, or selling your home and paying Unlock their agreed percentage. You also have the option of extending your terms.
Note: Unlock enjoys a 4.7/5 star-rating on Trustpilot based on over 1,000 customer reviews and is also a Trustpilot verified company.
Review – Hometap
Review – Unlock
What to Do? Who to Choose?
This is a major lump sum of money with very specific terms attached. In the case of both Hometap and Unlock, there is no loan, because they are investing in a percentage of your home’s value – whether the value goes up or down.
Beyond that and the information provided here, you should visit both sites and learn all the details for yourself before making a decision. As shown above, both companies come with a lot of online support from happy customers on trusted sites.
So the best option is to check out all the details and find the best fit for you.
