Only a short list of products puts cash in your hand against your home with no monthly payment. A home equity agreement is one. A reverse mortgage is another, if you’re 62 or older. Selling is the third, and it isn’t borrowing at all. Plenty of things get called payment-free that aren’t, including a HELOC that asks for interest only.
This page sorts the real options from the look-alikes, shows what each costs you in exchange for skipping the payment, and tells you which kind of homeowner each one fits.
The short answer: If your credit or income rules out a HELOC, a home equity agreement is the usual route: you could receive a lump sum and settle later with a share of your home’s value. If you’re 62 or older and plan to stay in the home for life, a reverse mortgage is the other. Either one costs more than a payment you could afford, so price a HELOC or home equity loan first if there’s any chance you qualify.
The options, sorted
| Option | Monthly payment? | Who it fits | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home equity agreement (also called a home equity investment) | None | Credit scores from 500 to the low 600s, income that’s hard to document, 25% or more equity | One settlement by the end of the term (10 years at most companies). It could cost far more than the cash you received |
| Reverse mortgage (HECM) | No monthly mortgage payment | Homeowners 62 and older who plan to stay | The balance grows because interest and fees are added each month. You still pay property taxes and insurance and keep the home up |
| Selling or downsizing | None after the sale | Anyone who can live in a smaller place or rent | You move, and sale costs come out of the equity |
| HELOC you don’t draw on | Nothing is due on a zero balance | A safety net you hope not to use | Nothing in your hands either, and annual or other charges may apply |
| HELOC, interest only during the draw period | Yes. Interest on what you’ve drawn | Not a no-payment option | Payments are often much higher once repayment begins |
Reverse mortgage facts: CFPB, What is a reverse mortgage?, read October 13, 2026. HELOC facts: CFPB and FTC pages read the same day. Agreement facts: our reviews of the companies, whose figures were read October 6, 2026.
Home equity agreements
A home equity agreement gives you a lump sum now. You make no monthly payments, and the company earns a share of your home’s value, or of its change in value, when you settle. You settle by selling, refinancing or paying with savings, by the end of the term. Credit minimums at the companies we’ve reviewed run from 500 to 620, and Hometap, Point and Splitero have no income requirement.
The cost shows up at the end. In Hometap‘s calculator, a $50,000 investment on a $500,000 home settles for $123,920 after 10 years of 3.25% yearly appreciation. In Point‘s own example, $50,000 on a $500,000 home becomes $114,300 after five years of 3.5% appreciation. In Splitero‘s, $100,000 on a $1,000,000 home becomes $240,000 after five years. Those are illustrations, not quotes. For a $50,000 loan paid over 10 years at 9%, the total payments come to $76,005, which our home equity loan vs home equity investment page works through.
The companies side by side
| Company | Minimum credit score | Amount | Term | Company fee | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hometap (review) | 575 FICO | $15,000 to $600,000 | 10 years | 4.5%, up to $20,000 | 27 |
| Unlock (review) | 500 | $15,000 to $500,000 | 10 years | 4.9% | 26 |
| Point (review) | 500 | $30,000 to $600,000 | 30 years | 3.9%, $2,000 minimum | 29 and D.C. (select regions) |
| Splitero (review) | 500 | $50,000 to $600,000 | 10 to 30 years | 4.99% | 17 |
| Unison (review) | 620 mid-FICO, generally | $30,000 to $500,000 | Up to 30 years | 3.9% | 22 and D.C. |
| Nada (review) | 500 (720 for an investment property) | $20,000 to $600,000 | 10 years | 4.9% in total | 12 listed |
The published starting points from each company’s own website, as we compared them in our roundup on October 6, 2026. Meeting them doesn’t mean an approval. Your state and credit score will rule out most of the list before price does.
Head-to-head pages: Hometap vs Point, Hometap vs Unison, Unison vs Point and Point vs Splitero. The full roundup has the rest.
Seven states have no home equity agreement company among the six we compare: Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota and West Virginia. In Texas, only Nada lists the state. In all eight, the options below the table are your realistic routes.
Get an estimate from Hometap or see your offer from Point. Both say the first step has no credit impact or uses a soft inquiry, and looking doesn’t commit you to anything.
Reverse mortgage
A reverse mortgage is the one product here that’s a loan with no monthly payment. The CFPB says borrowers don’t make monthly mortgage payments. Instead, interest and fees are added to the balance each month, so what you owe grows and your equity shrinks.
The most common kind is the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, or HECM, which the CFPB says is only for homeowners who are 62 and older. You still pay property taxes and homeowners insurance, keep the home in good repair and live there as your main residence. Falling behind on those costs puts the home at risk, as our seniors guide explains.
It’s built for staying put for life. It’s a poor fit if you may move in a few years or want to leave the home to heirs with a clean slate. Our HELOC for seniors guide sets a reverse mortgage next to a HELOC and an agreement: the required counseling, the costs, what heirs owe, and what it does to Social Security, Medicare and SSI.
Selling or downsizing
It isn’t borrowing, but it solves the same problem. Selling turns the whole equity into cash with no lien, no settlement date and no payment. You give up the home and pay the costs of selling, and you’ll need somewhere to live. If the real issue is that the house costs more to keep than you can afford, this is the option that fixes the cause and not just the cash flow.
Look-alikes that still have a payment
A HELOC in its draw period can ask for interest only. That’s a smaller payment, not no payment, and the FTC and CFPB both describe a repayment stage afterward when payments are often much higher. We put numbers on it in our payment table for a $100,000 HELOC.
A HELOC you open and don’t draw on has a zero balance, and the FTC notes you make payments only on the amount you borrow. That’s a safety net and not a source of cash. Lenders may charge annual or other fees, so ask before you open one.
Anything with “no monthly payment” in the pitch deserves one question: when does the money come due, and how much? For an agreement it’s the settlement. For a reverse mortgage it’s the balance, when you sell, move or die.
Which one fits you
| Your situation | Where to look first |
|---|---|
| Credit is 500 to the low 600s, or income is hard to document, and you have 25% or more equity | A home equity agreement. Start with the roundup, then the company that serves your state |
| You’re 62 or older, plan to stay for life and can’t add a payment | A reverse mortgage. Start with a HUD-approved counselor. Our seniors guide has the details |
| You can carry a payment but want the lowest cost | Not this page. Price a home equity loan or HELOC first, and see the payment tables |
| Your state has no agreement company (AK, ME, MA, MS, ND, SD, WV) | A HELOC or home equity loan, a reverse mortgage if you’re 62 or older, or selling |
| The house costs more than you can keep up | Selling or downsizing |
A starting point, not advice for your case. Each product adds a lien or ends in a sale, so the home is at stake in every row but the last.
For the bigger picture, our guide to getting equity out without refinancing covers the loan options too, and home equity options at each credit score sorts them by score.
For one HELOC lender’s terms in detail, see our Achieve HELOC review.
HELOC alternatives with no monthly payment, answered
Not in the usual sense. A HELOC asks for payments on what you borrow, and many plans ask for minimum monthly payments based on your balance. During the draw period you may pay only interest. A line you haven’t drawn on has no balance to pay.
It depends on you. For credit scores from 500 to the low 600s or income that’s hard to document, a home equity agreement. For homeowners 62 and older who plan to stay, a reverse mortgage. If you can carry a payment, a home equity loan or HELOC is likely the cheaper choice.
The CFPB says borrowers don’t make monthly mortgage payments on a reverse mortgage. You still pay property taxes and homeowners insurance, and you must keep the home in good repair and live there as your main residence.
You settle once, by selling the home, refinancing or using savings, at or before the end of the term. The amount is tied to your home’s value, and several companies publish a cap on it.
We’ve reviewed six: Hometap, Unlock, Point, Splitero, Unison and Nada. The roundup compares them on credit score, states, amount, term and fees.
In Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota and West Virginia we have none to point you to, and in Texas only Nada lists the state. A HELOC, a home equity loan, or from age 62 a reverse mortgage are the realistic routes.
How we put this guide together
This guide is Banks Done Right’s editorial view. The agreement figures come from our own published reviews and roundup, built on each company’s website and read on October 6, 2026. The reverse mortgage, HELOC and home equity loan facts come from the CFPB and FTC pages listed below, read October 13, 2026. We did not rank the options or give any company a score.
Sources (5)
Government sources were read on the date shown. The company figures in our reviews were read on each company’s own website on October 6, 2026.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What is a reverse mortgage?. consumerfinance.gov. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What is a home equity line of credit (HELOC)?. consumerfinance.gov. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Federal Trade Commission. Home Equity Loans and Home Equity Lines of Credit. consumer.ftc.gov. Accessed October 13, 2026.
- Banks Done Right. Top Home Equity Agreement Companies of 2026. banksdoneright.com. Accessed October 13, 2026. Source of the company table.
- Banks Done Right. HELOC for Seniors. banksdoneright.com. Accessed October 13, 2026. Reverse mortgage detail beyond the CFPB page above.
Take the next step.
See what an agreement could offer you before you rule it out.
Keep reading
RoundupTop Home Equity Agreement Companies ComparedCompare costs, minimum credit scores and state coverage for each company.
GuideHELOC for Seniors: Comparing Home Equity OptionsA HELOC, a home equity agreement and a reverse mortgage, side by side.
ComparisonHEI vs HELOC: Which One Fits YouHow the monthly payment, total cost and qualifying rules compare.
Terms, pricing and availability change. Check the current terms on each company’s site before you apply.