"What Credit Score Do You Need for a HELOC? The Five Points Between 715 and 720"

Your banking app has said 725 for a month, and the kitchen plan was built on that number. Then the lender's own report comes back at 715, and the tier you were counting on starts at 720.

A home equity line opens at a 640 credit score with one of the lenders I work with and 660 with another, and each step up at 680, 720 and 760 lets you borrow more against your home.

I'm Jeff Moran, a mortgage broker in Bluffton, South Carolina, originating since 1996, licensed in fifteen states, NMLS #483943, through C2 Financial Corporation. The numbers below come from three lender sheets, each named and dated beside the number.

If you are still deciding between a line of credit, a lump-sum second mortgage and a cash-out refinance, second mortgages and HELOCs explained walks through that choice.

The minimum credit score for a HELOC on my lenders' sheets

A HELOC is a home equity line of credit, a revolving line secured by your home that you draw from, pay down and draw from again. Each lender's minimum score gets your file in the door, and the tiers above it set the line size, the loan-to-value cap and the rate.

Lender sheet	What it is	Minimum score
Quorum Federal Credit Union, Second Lien HELOC matrix, May 1, 2026	HELOC on the home you live in or a second home (not available in Texas)	640 FICO
Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions, Closed End Second & HELOC matrix, May 8, 2026	HELOC on the home you live in, with full income documentation or bank statements	660, and 700 on a second home or investment property
Luxury Mortgage Corp., Simple Seconds underwriting guidelines, version 3.0, May 12, 2026	Fixed second mortgage, the lump-sum kind rather than a line	680 for every applicant (Section 7.2)

The line size and loan-to-value cap at each credit score

Combined loan-to-value, or CLTV, is your first mortgage balance plus the full line amount, divided by what your home is worth. Each lender caps that number, and on these sheets the cap moves with your score.

Quorum's Second Lien HELOC matrix, May 1, 2026, on a one-unit home you live in:

Score	Maximum CLTV	Maximum line
640 to 659	80%	$100,000
660 to 679	80%	$200,000
680 to 719	90%	$750,000 under 65% CLTV, $500,000 above it
720 and above	95%	$750,000 under 65% CLTV, $500,000 above it

Angel Oak's Closed End Second & HELOC matrix, May 8, 2026, on a home you live in:

Score	Maximum CLTV	Maximum line
660	75%	$400,000
680	75%	$500,000
720	85%	$500,000 (or 75% up to $750,000)
760	90%	$500,000

Two other numbers move with your score. The first is your debt ratio, your monthly debt payments divided by your monthly income before taxes. Quorum splits it in two, a housing ratio that is only your home payments against your income, and a total debt ratio that adds everything else.

Sheet	Lower score tier	Higher score tier
Angel Oak, May 8, 2026	45% under a 700 score	50% at 700 and above
Quorum, May 1, 2026	housing 38%, total 43% under 720	housing 43%, total 45% over 720

Quorum's matrix writes its cutoffs as "under 720" and "over 720", so it does not say which pair applies at exactly 720. If you land right on 720, that is worth confirming with the lender.

The second is reserves, which means money you still have in savings after closing, counted in months of payments. On the home you live in, Quorum's reserve matrix asks you to show three months of payments at a 640 to 679 score. At 680 and above you show none on a line under $200,000, and the count climbs with the line.

The rate moves by band as well. On both HELOC sheets it is the prime rate plus a margin the lender adds, and Quorum's margin grid runs in roughly 20-point score bands from 640 up to 800 and above. I am not printing those margins, because they are pricing and they change. How much your credit score changes your mortgage rate explains the same step mechanism.

The credit score the lender uses on a HELOC

You usually have three scores on a mortgage credit report, one from each bureau, and the sheets say which one counts.

Angel Oak's matrix, May 8, 2026, uses your middle score when you apply alone, and the primary wage earner's middle score when there is more than one of you.

Luxury Mortgage's Simple Seconds guidelines, Section 7.2, use the middle score of the primary income earner. If everyone on the loan earns the same, the lowest middle score is used.

Quorum's matrix says a three-bureau credit report is required, the lender uses the score from its own report, and it follows Fannie Mae's guidelines for deciding which score is the qualifying one.

The lender's own pull is the number on the file. Your free score is not your mortgage score explains why the two usually differ.

Bankruptcy, foreclosure and late mortgage payments on a HELOC

Mortgage payment history. All three sheets want a clean 24 months. Quorum's matrix says 0x30 in the last 24 months, which means no payment 30 days late in that window, and Angel Oak's matrix and Luxury's Section 7.4 both say 0x30x24.

Bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale and deed in lieu. A deed in lieu is handing the home back to the lender instead of going through a foreclosure. Quorum's matrix says it follows Fannie Mae's seasoning rules, the waiting periods after one of those events, and then applies overlays of its own no matter how long ago the event was. An overlay is a lender's own rule that is stricter than Fannie Mae's. A loan modification, deferment or forbearance within the last three years gets the same score, CLTV, line, ratio and reserve overlays at Quorum. The self-employed rule in the last row of the table is listed only for a bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale or deed in lieu.

Quorum's overlay after one of those events	Rule
Minimum score	700
Maximum CLTV	80%
Maximum line	$150,000
Housing ratio and total debt ratio	34% and 38%
Reserves	twelve months
Self-employed	two years of tax returns, and bank statement income is not allowed

On Angel Oak's matrix you would need to be seven years past a foreclosure, deed in lieu, short sale, forbearance, modification or a mortgage payment 120 days late, and 60 months past the discharge date of a bankruptcy.

Luxury's Section 7.5 treats a foreclosure, short sale, deed in lieu, bankruptcy of any chapter, modification or a mortgage payment 120 days late as a significant credit event. Its table shows you are not eligible in the first five years after one.

Each of those waiting periods counts from a specific date. Angel Oak counts a bankruptcy from the discharge date, and Luxury counts from the event's completion or the discharge or dismissal date to the note date, the day you sign the loan. When you can buy a home after a bankruptcy or foreclosure explains which date governs on a first mortgage.

The hard credit pull on a HELOC application

A hard pull is a credit inquiry a lender makes when you apply, and it can lower your score by a few points. A soft pull does not affect your score.

Quorum's matrix says the approval is valid for 45 days and a new application or a resubmission needs a fresh report. Luxury's guidelines say the report is good for 120 days from the report date to the note date. It also asks for a soft pull within ten calendar days of funding, the day the lender sends the money, or credit monitoring through the funding date.

The CFPB's explanation of what happens when a mortgage lender checks your credit says that when you shop for a mortgage, multiple credit checks from mortgage lenders within a 45-day window are recorded on your report as a single inquiry. Does getting pre-approved hurt your credit score explains why the window on the scores mortgage lenders pull can be shorter, so keeping your applications close together is safer.

A credit score just under a tier break

Back to the 715 with the tier at 720.

You can work on the score the lender reads. On a two-applicant line at Angel Oak or Luxury, the primary earner's middle score is the number, so raising the other applicant's score changes nothing on those sheets. The exception is Luxury when everyone on the loan earns the same, because then the lowest middle score counts.

You can pay down revolving balances before the pull, if the money is there. Card balances re-report every statement cycle, so that can show up on the next report. Eight ways to strengthen your credit before a mortgage covers why paying before the statement date matters.

You can wait a cycle. A score a few points under a tier can move once a paid-down card balance reports, and a short wait is a reasonable plan when the gap is small.

Steps to take before you apply for a HELOC

1. Please have your current first mortgage statement ready, all pages, even a last page that is intentionally left blank. The balance on it sets your CLTV.
2. You'll want to settle on the amount you want available, because the line caps are by score.
3. Please send me the score your credit app shows, and I can read the sheets against it.

Common mistakes with credit scores and HELOCs

Shopping on the app score alone. A plan built on a 725 that pulls as a 715 drops from Quorum's 95% CLTV tier to its 90% tier, and from Angel Oak's 85% tier to its 75% tier.

Adding the higher-score spouse to fix the tier. At Angel Oak and Luxury the primary income earner's score is the one that counts.

An example, with invented numbers

Numbers below are made up to show the mechanism.

Nadia owns the home she lives in. Her home is worth about $450,000 and her first mortgage balance is $270,000. She wants an $80,000 line.

Home value                              $450,000
First mortgage balance                  $270,000
Requested line                           $80,000
                                        --------
Total of both liens                     $350,000
Combined loan-to-value                     77.8%

On Quorum's Second Lien HELOC matrix, May 1, 2026, the same file comes out this way at three scores.

At a 650 score, the maximum CLTV on a one-unit home she lives in is 80% and the line cap is $100,000. The $80,000 line fits under both, with three months of reserves required.

At a 665 score, the maximum CLTV is still 80% and the cap rises to $200,000. The $80,000 line fits, the three months of reserves still apply, and the margin band is a different one.

At a 725 score, the maximum CLTV is 95% and the cap is $500,000 at this CLTV. The $80,000 line fits easily, no reserves are required on a line under $200,000, and the margin band is better again.

Nadia can borrow the $80,000 at all three scores. What changes is her rate, whether she has to show reserves, and how much more she could borrow. At $150,000 instead, the CLTV is 93.3%, the 650 is over its $100,000 line cap, the 665 is over its 80% CLTV cap, and only the 725 fits.

Your next step

The rate tool on this site prices first mortgages. It does not price a home equity line or a second mortgage, so for those I quote you directly from the current sheets. You are welcome to call me at (843) 765-0000 or email me at jeff@solverya.com. With the score your app shows, your first mortgage balance and the line amount you want, I can tell you which tier you are near and what it gets you.

If the question underneath is whether to replace your first mortgage with a cash-out refinance instead of adding a second, the rate tool on the homepage can show you pricing for that scenario on your own time. You can choose a rate option that works best for you, and that selection can change later.

Nothing here is a loan approval, a denial or a commitment to lend.

Common questions

What is the minimum credit score for a HELOC?

It depends on the lender's sheet. Quorum Federal Credit Union's Second Lien HELOC matrix dated May 1, 2026, sets a 640 minimum FICO on the home you live in or a second home. Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions' Closed End Second & HELOC matrix dated May 8, 2026, starts its HELOC at 660 on the home you live in and 700 on a second home or investment property. Luxury Mortgage's Simple Seconds guidelines, dated May 12, 2026, start a fixed second mortgage at 680.

Does a HELOC use the middle credit score?

On the sheets I work from, yes. Angel Oak's matrix uses the middle score for a single applicant and the middle score of the primary wage earner when there is more than one. Luxury Mortgage's Section 7.2 uses the middle score of the primary income earner. Quorum uses the score from its own three-bureau report and follows Fannie Mae's guidelines for choosing the qualifying score.

Can I get a HELOC after a bankruptcy or foreclosure?

Sometimes, and the terms are tighter. Quorum's matrix, May 1, 2026, follows Fannie Mae seasoning and then applies its own overlays no matter how long ago the event was. Those include a 700 minimum score, a maximum CLTV of 80%, a lower maximum line and twelve months of reserves. Angel Oak's matrix, May 8, 2026, lists seven years for a foreclosure, deed in lieu, short sale, forbearance or modification and 60 months from the discharge date for a bankruptcy. Luxury's guidelines do not allow an applicant within five years of a significant credit event.

Does applying for a HELOC do a hard pull on my credit?

Yes. Quorum's matrix says a three-bureau credit report is required and the lender uses its own report's score. Luxury's guidelines give the report 120 days of life and add a soft pull within ten days of funding, the day the lender sends the money. The CFPB says that when you shop for a mortgage, multiple credit checks from mortgage lenders within a 45-day window count on your report as one inquiry. The window on the scores mortgage lenders pull can be shorter, so it is safer to keep your applications close together.