However, even if you have a situation like this and paying off debt with a cash-out refinance loan makes financial sense, there are some downsides. You’re putting your home at risk if you can’t pay your new mortgage loan, as the lender could foreclose. And there could be substantial closing costs and fees to pay for the new mortgage loan. You need to be aware of the risks — and costs — before you move forward.
A mortgage refinance loan isn’t the only way to tap into equity in your home to pay off debt. Home equity loans also usually have lower interest rates than credit cards, personal loans, and similar types of consumer debt. But they work differently than cash-out refinance loans.
When you take out a home equity loan, you don’t get a big loan used to repay your current mortgage and keep the cash left over. Instead, you keep your current mortgage and take out a second smaller loan for the amount you need to pay off debt or accomplish some other goal. You can pick your repayment period, which might last anywhere from a few years to a few decades.
You could also take out a home equity loan and use the proceeds to pay off higher-interest debt
If you choose a shorter repayment timeline, or if you borrow only a small amount and pay it off early, you could save a lot of money this way. If you took out a $10,000 home equity loan to be repaid over five years at 5.25% interest and used it to pay off the $10,000 personal loan described above, the interest costs would come down to $1,391. This is a savings of $1,357.
However, there are some caveats here, too. First, you need equity in your home to qualify for a home equity loan, just as you need equity to qualify for a cash-out refinance loan. Second, home equity loan interest isn’t tax deductible unless you’ve used the proceeds to improve, repair, or buy a home — so you couldn’t deduct the interest on a home equity loan taken out to pay off debt.