Huntington National Bank: 2024 Home Equity Review

Benefits

• Easily tappable: You can access HELOC funds by writing a check, making a withdrawal from a branch ATM or doing an online transfer to another account
• Fairly speedy: Funds are available within two weeks
• The bank operates over 1,000 branches in 11 states

Drawbacks

• Huntington National Bank does not publish specific rates for its home equity loans on its website (it does list APR ranges for HELOCs)
• The lender does not publish details on loan limits or credit score requirements
• The lender only accepts online applications from 17 states, though you may be able to apply over the phone if you’re a current customer outside of these states

Home equity loan products offered

Huntington offers two home equity products — a fixed-rate home equity loan and a home equity line of credit (HELOC), which starts out as a variable rate but can be converted to a fixed-rate. For both, Huntington advertises “competitive” rates, but you’ll have to contact the lender to find out exactly what those rates are and how to qualify for them.

Huntington does list a range of annual percentage rates (APRs) for its HELOCs. They currently go from 9.14 percent up to 15.27 percent, based on the size of your credit line (the larger it is, the lower the rate). While it fluctuates monthly, the rate will never be higher than 18.0 percent, the bank says.

Huntington’s HELOC has pretty standard line-of-credit terms: It comes with a 10-year draw period where you can access your funds in your line of credit and you’re online required to pay interest. At the end of this period, you’ll have a 20-year repayment period in which the debt is fully amortized.

Types of fees charged

While Huntington doesn’t charge origination or application fees, its products do carry some upfront expenses. Both the HELOC and home equity loan require a new appraisal and title search, which you’ll have to pay for. With a HELOC, there’s a $60 annual fee (or $50 if you’re in Minnesota). If you’re taking out more than $750,000, you’ll have to buy borrower-paid title insurance. You may also need to pay mail-away fees ranging from $125 to $375, plus a $25 courier fee, if the closing is done by a third party on Huntington’s behalf. There’s also a $75 fee in certain states if you convert your HELOC balance from a variable rate to a fixed rate.

How to qualify with Huntington National Bank

Huntington doesn’t specify online what their minimum requirements are for a home equity loan or HELOC. In general, most home equity lenders require a credit score of 640 or better. However, to get the best rate available on a HELOC, Huntington specifies that borrowers must be approved for $75,000 or more; take a first line advance of at least $25,000; have a loan-to-value ratio of 80 percent or lower; and have a credit score of 760 or higher.

How to apply with Huntington National Bank

You can start the application process with Huntington on their site by creating an account and filling out a form. You can also reach a representative over the phone by calling (800) 550-7958, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. ET, or Saturdays, 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET.

How Bankrate scored Huntington National Bank

• Methodology

  To determine a home equity lender's Bankrate Score, Bankrate rates lenders on a scale of one (1) to five (5) stars — with five (5) the highest rating — based on a variety of factors relating to the lender's products and services. To assign our ratings, we assessed each mortgage lender across three core areas:

  • Affordability: Annual percentage rate (APR) - 80%; introductory APR - 20%
  • Availability: Licensing - 50%; credit score - 20%; loan minimum - 10%; draw requirement - 10%; loan products - 10% 
  • Borrower experience: Rate transparency - 45%; convenience - 35%; customer service - 10%; fixed-rate options - 10%

  Learn more about our methodology.