Is it better to have a equity loan or a refinance home loan?

HELOC will drop your credit vs a refinance. Some banks look at like a huge credit card balance. 1 mortgage is the best debt on a credit report. Talk to different banks and get there HONEST opinion. don't listen to bs HELOC dose not have closing fees, i have seen some that are about as much as a mortgage.

http://www.CreditCardHelpDesk.com will help answer this question for you.

Lots of good free info.

I wouldnt do either. If you put that money on your house and something happens and you cant make the payments. You will lose your house.

The goal here is to pay off your house not add to the debt.

If you get an equity loan you will have two payments each month, one for your regular mortgage, and the other for the equity loan. Refinancing may mean a different interest rate, so be careful and investigate the rates on the new loan. If you need cash and can pay back the equity loan fast, it may be cheaper since banks don't usually charge closing costs on equity lines of credit. The equity line also lets you "loan" yourself only what you need when you write a check on that account. You can pay that back before you borrow more for something else. Refinancing will give you the total cash out in a lump, and you will have to pay it back over the entire life of the mortgage.