Citizens Bank: Home Equity Review 2025

Citizens Financial Group, headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with roots dating back to 1828. Citizens offers a broad range of banking, savings and lending products, including home equity lines of credit. In 2024, Citizens celebrated its 10th year as a public company on the New York Stock Exchange; its IPO is still the largest by a commercial bank in U.S. history. 

Citizens home equity products offered

Citizens Bank offers a standard HELOC and its proprietary GoalBuilder HELOC. Both have variable interest rates.

Among the benefits of the standard HELOC, you can get a 0.25 discount off your rate if you sign up for automatic payments from a Citizens checking account (or auto-withdrawal from any checking account, depending on where you live). The line of credit has a 10-year draw period and a 15-year repayment term. While you can pay both principal and interest during the draw period, you only have to make payments on interest at that time. You’ll need to take out a line for a minimum of $17,500.

The bank’s GoalBuilder HELOC, in contrast, allows you to take out as little as $5,000 and up to $25,000. It has no annual fee or prepayment penalty.

Affordability: 3.2/5 

• APR: Citizens don’t disclose their APRs, and you have to apply for the loan to get a personalized offer.
• Draw minimum: Citizens offers a 10-year borrowing period with no minimum draw requirement.
• Fees: While Citizens Bank doesn’t charge an application fee or closing costs on HELOCs, it does charge late fees, as well as a $50 annual fee after the first year. Its GoalBuilder HELOC doesn’t come with an annual fee or a prepayment penalty.

Lack of transparency about the APR, along with the annual fee, results in Citizens scoring a 3.2 out of 5 rating.

Availability: 4.3/5 

• Loan products: Citizens’ has two HELOC products, aimed at different target groups.
• Where to find: Citizens has a network that spans 29 states – Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine
• Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio
• Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont and Washington D.C.
• Credit score: Citizens doesn’t disclose the minimum credit score requirements, saying only you don’t need perfect credit to qualify. HELOC lenders in general require scores in the mid-600s at least. And of course, a stronger score positively impacts your chances of approval and the sort of rate offer you’ll receive.  
• Loan minimum: With Citizens GoalBuilder HELOC, you can take out as little as $5,000 – quite modest, compared to most five-figure HELOC minimums. Its standard HELOC requires that you take out at least $17,500, still on the low side.

Citizens earns a 4.3 out of 5 because of its two distinct HELOC options, and the fact that it’s  accessible in a majority of U.S. states. 

Borrower experience: 4.1/5 

• Rate transparency: Citizens boasts that it takes under two minutes to find out what you can qualify for, with no impact on your credit score. 
• Convenience: Borrowers can apply for a Citizens HELOC on the phone, online or in a branch. The bank offers 24-hour telephone support and a full array of online banking services.
• Customer service: Within one business day of submitting your online application, a home loan originator will contact you to discuss the next steps in the process. 

Citizens scores 4.1 out of 5 due to their speed and breadth of its customer support and application options. 

Citizens Bank gets a B+ rating from the Better Business Bureau and a 1.2 star rating from Trustpilot, as of this writing.  

What consumers say about Citizens

Many customers on Bankrate say the Citizens application process was “generally straightforward” and “easy” — “a lot easier compared to others I have been acquainted with,” one client confided. Reps win raves for being “knowledgeable,” “professional” and even “compassionate.” While Citizens doesn’t disclose its APRs online, one customer noted how the “rates are affordable and reliable.”

How to qualify for a HELOC with Citizens Bank

Citizens Bank looks at three main factors when determining eligibility for a HELOC: your credit history (FICO score); your loan-to-value (LTV) ratio; and your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio. The bank doesn’t disclose credit score requirements, but to get the best HELOC rates, you’ll need an LTV ratio of 80 percent or less.

You can apply for a HELOC on Citizens Bank’s website or by calling 888-333-1206, Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET, Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET or Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. ET. Once you’ve submitted a HELOC application, you will receive a personalized offer in 2-3 minutes and a loan officer will respond to you within one business day. From there, they’ll provide next steps for your application.

Citizens’ FastLine digital application process can be completed in three steps. First, you enter your Personal Invitation Code along with the last four digits of your Social Security number. Then, confirm certain financial information about your property and income, along with personal details about yourself. Once you accept the offer, you can close in as little as 7 days, the lender claims.