The best time to take home equity loans is when the interest rates are low. The lower the interest rates are the lower your payments. Many homeowners use home equity as a way to take yearly trips with the family. Every year they take out the loan and pay if off the following year. They continue to do this every year. Therefore, they own a home, take a family vacation every year and claim the interest on their taxes every year. It really cannot get any better than that. Some people use the equity loans for buying things for the home or for building a new garage.
Home mortgage equity loans do have the same conditions for applying as a conventional loan. Even thought the money is technically yours if you would sell the house for a profit, you still have to meet the criteria for approval. You need to have a credit check, which will include checking your credit score and payment history as well as your debt ratio verses you income. If you have maintained good credit, you will have no problems getting approval. If you have some credit issues, you might be denied or be approved for a higher interest rate.
The idea candidate for equity loans are people who have good credit with enough equity in the home to pay the debt in case of an accident. Some people will take the line of equity credit that can collect interest as long as it is left in the bank. You can use the money as you need while making the money payments. There are many reasons as well as options for home equity loans. You can use it like a savings account that you pay yourself back with interest. However, only take an equity loan if you need it and are going to use it.