HEI Facts.com

StudyLast checked September 23, 2026

The true cost of home equity investments in 2026

We ran the published terms of Point, Hometap, Unlock, and Unison through one cost model. In a typical case they cost 14.1% to 15.9% a year. Here's what drives that number, how it changes with your home and your timeline, and the full data.

Key findings

  1. In a typical case ($100,000 on a $750,000 home with a $300,000 mortgage, 4% yearly appreciation, settled after 7 years), home equity investments cost 14.1% to 15.9% a year, roughly 5.6 to 7.4 points above the 8.5% HELOC rate we use for reference.
  2. Even if your home doesn't appreciate at all, they cost 3.5% to 11.5% a year. Multipliers and discounted starting values mean 2 of the 4 still cost more than an 8.5% HELOC in a flat market.
  3. Settling early is the most expensive way to use one: 20.2% to 22.7% a year if you settle after 3 years. Unison, the one provider with no published cost cap, costs 43.8% if settled after a single year, against at most 28.1% for the capped providers.
  4. In a hot market (8% a year), costs reach 18.5% to 23.1% a year. Cost caps start to bind here: Point hits its cap.
  5. The cheapest provider changes with your situation: Unison if prices are flat, Hometap at typical growth, and Point if you settle within 3 years. No single "best HEI" exists.
  6. Holding longer lowers the yearly rate, to 11.0% to 12.7% a year over 10 years, because upfront fees and discounts are spread over more time. The dollars owed still grow every year.

Cost by home appreciation

Effective yearly cost, settled after 7 years. $100,000 on a $750,000 home with a $300,000 mortgage.

Effective yearly cost of home equity investments by home appreciation, settled after 7 yearsLine chart. Cost rises with appreciation for all four providers; Unison is cheapest when prices are flat but most expensive when they rise fast.-5%0%5%10%15%20%25%-2%0%2%4%6%8%Yearly home appreciationEffective yearly costHELOC reference 8.5%Unison 23.1%Unlock 20.4%Point 18.9%Hometap 18.5%
Effective yearly cost of home equity investments by home appreciation, settled after 7 yearsLine chart. Cost rises with appreciation for all four providers; Unison is cheapest when prices are flat but most expensive when they rise fast.-5%0%5%10%15%20%25%-2%0%2%4%6%8%Yearly home appreciationEffective yearly costHELOC reference 8.5%Unison 23.1%Unlock 20.4%Point 18.9%Hometap 18.5%
The dashed line is the 8.5% HELOC rate we use for reference; it's an assumption, not a market quote.
Provider-2%0%2%4%6%8%
Point5.0%8.3%11.3%14.3%17.1%18.9%
Hometap7.5%9.7%11.9%14.1%16.3%18.5%
Unlock9.2%11.5%13.7%15.9%18.1%20.4%
Unison-4.8%3.5%9.6%14.7%19.1%23.1%

Highlighted: the cheapest provider at each rate of appreciation.

Cost by years until you settle

Effective yearly cost at 4% yearly appreciation. $100,000 on a $750,000 home with a $300,000 mortgage.

Effective yearly cost of home equity investments by years until settlement, at 4% yearly appreciationLine chart. Yearly cost falls the longer you hold. Unison, with no published cap, is far costlier than the others if settled in year one.0%10%20%30%40%50%12345678910Years until you settleEffective yearly costHELOC reference 8.5%Unison 12.7%Unlock 12.2%Point 11.5%Hometap 11.0%
Effective yearly cost of home equity investments by years until settlement, at 4% yearly appreciationLine chart. Yearly cost falls the longer you hold. Unison, with no published cap, is far costlier than the others if settled in year one.0%10%20%30%40%50%135710Years until you settleEffective yearly costHELOC reference 8.5%Unison 12.7%Unlock 12.2%Point 11.5%Hometap 11.0%
Ten-year agreements must settle by year 10. Yearly cost falls as you hold longer, but the dollars owed keep growing.
Provider1 yr2 yr3 yr5 yr7 yr10 yr
Point24.7%*21.3%*20.2%*18.0%14.3%11.5%
Hometap27.8%*23.9%*22.7%*16.4%14.1%11.0%
Unlock28.1%*23.9%*22.6%*21.1%15.9%12.2%
Unison43.8%27.0%21.6%16.9%14.7%12.7%

Highlighted: cheapest at each holding period. * The provider's cost cap sets the price.

Providers we couldn't model

Splitero doesn't publish its share of appreciation or its cap level, so we can't estimate its cost from public information.

CHEIFS doesn't publish its share of future value, but it does publish annual cost caps of 12.99% or 14.99%, depending on the program. Those caps set the most it could cost:

Settled afterAt most (12.99% program)At most (14.99% program)
3 years14.7%16.8%
5 years14.0%16.1%
7 years13.7%15.7%
10 years13.5%15.5%

Methodology

The example. $100,000 on a $750,000 home with a $300,000 mortgage, $1,500 in third-party closing costs, with appreciation from -2% to 8% a year and settlement after 1 to 10 years.

The terms. Each provider's published terms (share structure, multiplier, starting-value discount, fees, cost cap, and term), last verified September 23, 2026, with every source listed on HEI Calculator's provider terms page. Where a provider sets terms per offer, we use its own published example.

The measure. Effective yearly cost is the single annual rate at which the cash you actually receive, after fees, would have to grow to equal what you settle for. It lets different structures be compared with each other and with a loan's rate.

The engine. The same cost engine powers HEI Calculator and HEI Compare, so the numbers match across all three sites.

Limits. Real offers are priced individually and vary by state, home, and underwriting. This models published structures, not any individual's offer. The 8.5% HELOC figure is a reference point we chose, not a quoted market rate. Taxes and the time value of money beyond the effective rate aren't modeled.

Data and citation

Download CSVDownload JSON

Free to use with attribution (CC BY 4.0). Every provider, appreciation rate, and holding period in the study.

HEI Facts. "The True Cost of Home Equity Investments in 2026." September 2026. https://heifacts.com/true-cost-2026

Journalists and researchers: questions or a custom cut of the data, hello@heifacts.com.

Want your own numbers? Run them on HEI Calculator. Comparing providers? See HEI Compare.

HEI Calculator

Run your own home and assumptions through every provider and get one comparable effective annual cost.

HEI Compare

Point, Hometap, Unlock, Unison, Splitero and CHEIFS side by side, with reviews and head-to-heads.

HEI Facts, HEI Calculator, and HEI Compare are sister sites run by the same independent team.