Citizens Bank HELOC Reviews

Citizens Bank offers several types of home loans, including conventional mortgages, refinance loans, new construction loans and HELOCs.

With a HELOC, homeowners borrow money against the equity in their home using their property as collateral. The approved loan amount then becomes a line of credit you can draw from over a period of 10 years and you only make payments on what you borrow.

At the end of the draw period, the HELOC is converted into monthly payments that include the principal and interest that must be repaid over a 15-year term.

The easiest way to apply for a HELOC from Citizens Bank is through the company’s digital application process called “Citizen’s FastLine,” but you can also call or visit a local branch to apply in person.

You’ll start by entering your property address and contact information, after which you’ll receive a personalized quote within two to three minutes. After you accept the quote and submit your application, you’ll be contacted by a representative within one business day to complete the process and upload financial documents.

Loans can close in as few as seven days and be funded within two weeks from the application date. You choose whether to make interest-only payments during your draw period or both interest and principal payments.

If you choose the former, at the end of your 10-year draw period your remaining balance will be converted into monthly payments of principal and interest to be repaid over a 15-year term.

Citizens Bank application features

Interest rates for HELOCs at Citizens Bank follow a benchmarked rate. Not all borrowers will qualify for the prime rate. Factors like your credit score, loan-to-value ratio (LTV) and debt-to-income ratio can affect your actual interest rate. Borrowers who qualify for the GoalBuilder HELOC receive interest rates 3 to 3.25 percentage points higher than the prime rate.

Homeowners may be eligible for a 0.25% rate reduction if they have a current consumer checking account with Citizens Bank and sign up for AutoPay at the time of loan origination.

There’s no option for a fixed-rate HELOC, meaning rates are variable throughout the life of your loan and payments are recalculated each month based on the current prime rate.

Citizens Bank offers two types of HELOCs. Both come with a 10-year draw period and a 15-year repayment period with no prepayment penalty.

• Standard HELOC: With a standard HELOC, you can choose to make interest-only payments during the draw period or contribute to the principal during this time. The minimum loan amount for a standard HELOC is $17,500, but the amount you qualify for depends on your credit score, the equity in your home and your debt-to-income ratio (DTI).
• GoalBuilder HELOC: The GoalBuilder HELOC is intended for lower-income borrowers and comes with income and location restrictions. These are available for loan amounts of $5,000 to $25,000 and have no annual fee, but they do come with higher interest rates (prime rate plus 3.00% to 3.25%).

Citizens Bank only offers HELOCs on the following types of property:

• Single-family homes
• Condominiums
• Owner-occupied, multi-family homes
• Vacation homes

You cannot take out a Citizens Bank HELOC on an investment property or a manufactured home.

Eligible properties must be located in one of the 29 states that Citizens Bank serves or in Washington, D.C. Homeowners are also required to have property insurance and some may need flood insurance and an appraisal. The company does not state a minimum credit score or income to qualify for a HELOC.

Citizens Bank doesn’t charge an application or origination fee and there are no closing costs. For the first year of your HELOC, there’s no annual fee, but each subsequent year borrowers must pay $50.

However, this fee is waived for borrowers who maintain a consumer account with Citizens Bank. Borrowers can reduce their overall costs by making payments toward the principal during the draw period.