Hometap Assessment 2026

Hometap, a Boston-based model, is a pacesetter within the rising house fairness settlement business — an progressive approach for individuals to faucet their house fairness for money with out taking out a mortgage.

As an alternative of month-to-month funds, prospects promise to provide Hometap a portion of their house’s fairness on the finish of the time period. Nevertheless, it may be a dangerous deal for a lot of as a result of it requires a balloon cost — a lump-sum reimbursement — on the finish of the time period. The quantity is just not decided initially of the settlement, so debtors will not understand how a lot they owe till the cost is due. Moreover, prospects should pay a danger evaluation price, which may find yourself being greater than they’d pay in curiosity.

CNBC Choose likes that, with Hometap, householders can leverage their house fairness to entry money. This may also help them repay high-interest debt or fund a renovation. We additionally like which you can have less-than-perfect credit score with this product — one thing that is a lot tougher to do with a house fairness mortgage or line of credit score.

Nevertheless, Hometap has a spotty customer support report, and its product may be very dangerous for some householders.

Hometap provides house fairness agreements, also called house fairness investments or house fairness sharing.

With this product, householders can get money by agreeing to provide Hometap a portion of the house’s present worth and future appreciation on the finish of the 15- to 30-year time period or once they promote the home.

This cost, due suddenly, is the principal quantity (what you had been initially given) plus a portion of your own home’s accrued worth, decided by the danger adjustment price, which may vary from 2% to 30%.

Should you do not make that cost, the house fairness settlement firm may drive you into foreclosures, like with a house fairness mortgage or line of credit score.

House fairness investments are a small however rising portion of the house fairness financing sector. The 4 largest firms (together with Hometap) inked offers totaling $1.1 billion within the first 10 months of 2024, in keeping with the latest knowledge from the Shopper Monetary Safety Bureau.

Hometap supplies house fairness agreements in 19 states and Washington, D.C.: Arizona, California, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah, and Virginia.

It doesn’t supply house fairness loans or strains of credit score. This is what a home-owner must qualify:

Necessities

• Minimal house fairness: 25%
• Minimal credit score rating: 575

Phrases

• Minimal funding: $15,000
• Most funding: $600,000
• House appraisal: Required
• Time period: 15 to 30 years or when the house is offered

Charges

• Origination price: 3% to five% of money fairness advance

On common, Hometap has 4.8 out of 5.0 stars on Trustpilot, based mostly on greater than 6,000 critiques — a really excessive customer support score on the positioning. Prospects lauded the service as pleasant, affected person and clear.

Nevertheless, its report is just not good. It has a B+ score from the Higher Enterprise Bureau, partly due to an ongoing lawsuit filed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in February of 2025. The go well with claims that Hometap engaged in “illegal and predatory practices that focused financially weak householders for revenue,” in keeping with the BBB. This BBB rating is decrease than that of lots of Hometap’s opponents, together with Level and Flagstar Financial institution, each of which have A+ rankings from the BBB.

In response to the go well with, a Hometap spokesperson advised CNBC Choose that the corporate “stands firmly behind the integrity of its merchandise and the householders we serve.”

“We consider the claims made by the Massachusetts Legal professional Normal’s Workplace are with out advantage, and as a founding member of the Coalition for House Fairness Partnership, we’re actively collaborating with Massachusetts legislators to determine a transparent regulatory framework for these merchandise,” the spokesperson added.

Prospects can name (855) 223-3144 from Monday via Friday, 9 a.m. to five p.m., or electronic mail the corporate at hiya@hometap.com. The business-hours-only telephone line could make it tough for individuals who want help to succeed in somebody. Many different house fairness financing firms supply night and weekend hours.

This is how Hometap stacks up in opposition to two main gamers within the house fairness area.

Hometap vs. Level

Between these two house fairness funding firms, Hometap is the higher choice if you wish to prioritize paying as little as potential. Level’s danger adjustment price can attain as much as 29%, which is greater than the utmost danger adjustment price charged by many opponents, together with Hometap.

Nevertheless, Level is on the market in additional states and has a 30-year time period, making it superb for somebody who would not plan to promote their house within the close to future.

Hometap vs. Flagstar Financial institution

Hometap and Flagstar each supply house fairness merchandise, however Flagstar solely provides house fairness loans and features of credit score, whereas Hometap provides house fairness sharing agreements completely.

For that motive, every has a singular set of necessities, execs and cons associated on to their merchandise supplied.

Flagstar’s house fairness loans and features of credit score are nice for somebody who would not wish to tackle the dangers and unknowns related to a house fairness funding settlement. Nevertheless, debtors might want to tackle new debt, have a credit score rating of a minimum of 700 and money out there to make month-to-month funds.

Hometap’s house fairness funding product is nice for many who know they’re going to be capable to pay the lump-sum cost due on the finish of the 15- to 30-year time period, who do not have a powerful credit score rating, or preferring to not make a month-to-month cost.

To use for a Hometap house fairness settlement, you may fill out a web-based request for an estimate. The corporate will ship you a verification electronic mail and assign you an funding supervisor who will likely be in contact with you about an estimate if Hometap needs to maneuver ahead.

Subsequent, you may full an software on the web site or over the telephone.

Like with all house fairness financing purposes, you may want your government-issued identification, tackle, social safety quantity, proof of employment, info on any opposed monetary occasions, property info (together with deed, householders affiliation), your final mortgage assertion, proof of house owners insurance coverage, and different paperwork to fill out the appliance.

After that, you may have to finish an appraisal. Hometap will then draw up the contract and set a date to signal the paperwork once you’ll shut on the deal.

Hometap is a superb choice for these with less-than-perfect credit score who’re assured they’ll make the lump-sum cost on the finish of the time period. It additionally works for these prepared to pay extra in charges and curiosity than they might for a house fairness mortgage or line of credit score in trade for no month-to-month funds.

Nevertheless, in case you are unsure once you’ll promote and do not know whether or not you may have the cash available to make the lump-sum cost on the finish of the time period, it is best to in all probability go along with a conventional house fairness product.

At CNBC Choose, our mission is to ship high-quality service journalism and complete client recommendation to our readers, enabling them to make knowledgeable monetary choices. Each mortgage evaluation is predicated on rigorous reporting by our group of knowledgeable writers and editors with intensive data of monetary merchandise. Whereas CNBC Choose earns a fee from affiliate companions on many provides and hyperlinks, we create all our content material with out enter from our business group or any outdoors third events and we pleasure ourselves on our journalistic requirements and ethics.

CNBC Choose critiques mortgage merchandise utilizing quite a lot of standards, together with common charges, phrases, availability, charges, varieties of loans supplied, on-line expertise and buyer satisfaction. 

Moreover, we incorporate findings from impartial sources, together with lender scores from the J.D. Energy mortgage origination and servicing surveys and rankings from the Higher Enterprise Bureau.

For house fairness loans, we evaluation charges, reimbursement phrases, the quantity of fairness required and the minimal and most mortgage quantities out there.

We additionally contemplate necessities for credit score scores, debt-to-income ratios and mixed loan-to-value ratios.

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