Home Equity Rates Edge Up;
HELOCs Rebound to 6.554%

Home equity rates ticked back up this week, with both segments higher after last week’s pullback. Variable-rate HELOCs rose 0.034 points to 6.554% APR, recovering part of last week’s sharp drop, while fixed-rate home equity loans edged up 0.026 points to 6.691%. The fixed loan stays just above the HELOC, the usual order, and the combined home equity average sits at 6.705%. With the Fed having held June 17 and leaning hawkish, neither segment has much room to fall.

📊 Full home equity data: 1,253 institutions tracked across all 50 states.

NATIONAL: Home equity rates edged higher for the week ending June 29, 2026, with both tracked segments ticking up after last week’s pullback. Variable-rate HELOCs rose 0.034 points to 6.554% APR, recovering part of the sharp drop they took a week earlier, while fixed-rate home equity loans edged up 0.026 points to 6.691%. The fixed loan stays just above the line of credit, the usual order, and the combined home equity average sits at 6.705%.

The HELOC did most of the bouncing. Variable-rate lines of credit rose 0.034 points to 6.554%, recovering a piece of the 0.336-point drop they took last week, which had looked like an overshoot. HELOCs are variable and priced off the prime rate, which moves in lockstep with the Fed’s benchmark, so they sit wherever prime sits. With the Fed holding its rate on June 17 for a fourth straight meeting, prime has not moved, and the HELOC average is simply settling back toward the level prime implies after last week’s dip below it.

Fixed-rate home equity loans rose more modestly, up 0.026 points to 6.691%, holding their place just above the HELOC. Unlike the line of credit, a home equity loan is a fixed-rate, lump-sum second mortgage, so its rate tracks longer-term lending costs and each lender’s pricing rather than the prime rate directly. The gap between the two segments narrowed slightly to 0.137 points, with the fixed loan still on top, the ordering that has held for most of this run.

For a homeowner, the two segments are close enough on price that the real choice is structure, not rate. A home equity loan hands over a lump sum at a fixed rate and a fixed payment, which suits a one-time, known expense. A HELOC works like a revolving credit line at a variable rate, which suits ongoing or uncertain costs but carries the risk that the rate moves. It is worth understanding the differences between a home equity loan and a HELOC, and exactly what a HELOC is and how it works, before tapping the equity in a home.

A modest, two-sided bounce is the right read on home equity this week. Both segments gave back ground last week, the HELOC sharply, and both recovered a little this week, leaving the fixed loan and the line of credit close together near the high-6% mark. The structure of the market did not change: the fixed loan sits a touch above the HELOC, and the combined average is parked around 6.70%, roughly where home equity borrowing has run for weeks. Small moves in both directions are what a flat-rate environment produces, and that is all this week was.

The two segments answer to different parts of the rate picture, which is why they are worth separating. The HELOC is variable and tied to the prime rate, and prime moves directly with the Federal Reserve. The Fed held its benchmark at 3.50% to 3.75% on June 17 for a fourth straight meeting, the first under new Chair Kevin Warsh, and its projections leaned hawkish, pointing to a possible hike rather than a cut. That keeps prime where it is and means a HELOC opened today is more likely to get more expensive than cheaper in the months ahead. The fixed home equity loan, by contrast, locks today’s rate for the life of the loan, so it is the more defensive choice if rates rise from here, while the HELOC’s draw-as-needed flexibility still suits borrowers who want a standby line rather than a lump sum. Either way, with the Fed signaling no relief, waiting for a lower rate looks like a weak bet right now.