Top HELOC Providers Up to the Maximum Combined Loan-to-Value

The Quick Read: No single provider tops every list, because the maximum combined loan-to-value (CLTV) depends on how you use the property, your credit profile, and the size of the line. Across the wholesale lenders Lendmire works with, an investment property line tops out at 70% CLTV. Primary-residence and second-home lines can reach 90% CLTV, but only at a 720 or better credit profile. The right program for you comes down to the property, your credit, and how much leverage you need.

• Occupancy sets the ceiling first. An investment line stops at 70% CLTV, while primary-residence and second-home lines can go higher.
• CLTV counts every loan on the property. The first mortgage and the new line must fit under the ceiling together.
• The full line counts, not just the drawn amount. An unused line still uses up room.
• A home equity line is underwritten on you. A DSCR cash-out refinance is underwritten on the property’s rent.
• Title matters. An LLC cannot hold title on these lines, so a rental held in an LLC needs a different product.

What Does Maximum Combined Loan-to-Value Mean?

Combined loan-to-value adds up every loan secured by the property, including the new line, and divides the total by the property’s value. Plain loan-to-value (LTV) counts only the first mortgage. If a rental is worth 100 and you owe 50 on the first mortgage, your LTV is 50%. Add a new line of 20 and your CLTV is 70%.

The maximum CLTV is the most total debt a lender will allow against the property. Lenders set that number as credit policy, so it differs from one program to the next. A single national figure does not exist.

This is why a ranked list of top providers misleads more than it helps. The program that gives one borrower the most room may not write the loan for another. The best fit for your situation depends on occupancy, credit, line size, and how the property is titled. Lendmire is a mortgage broker, not a lender. It shops its wholesale network of HELOC lenders and matches the file to the program, so this article explains how those programs behave instead of ranking companies.

Key Terms Defined

CLTV (combined loan-to-value): All loans secured by the property, divided by its value.

HELOC (home equity line of credit): A revolving credit line secured by the property that lets you borrow against equity.

Equity: What the property is worth minus what you owe on it.

Draw period: The stretch when you can borrow from the line, usually paying interest only.

Repayment period: The stretch after the draw period when the balance amortizes, meaning principal and interest are both paid down.

DTI (debt-to-income): Your monthly debts divided by your monthly income.

DSCR (debt service coverage ratio): Monthly rent divided by the full monthly payment on the property, covering principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and any HOA dues.

Vesting: The name or entity that holds legal title to the property.

How Is the Ceiling Applied, Step by Step?

Every lender follows the same basic arithmetic: value times the CLTV ceiling, minus existing liens, then dollar caps and borrower tests. The federal consumer-finance regulator’s explanation of a HELOC describes the line as an open-end loan you can draw on repeatedly against your equity. Here is how that works in order.

1. Value the property. On lines of $500,000 or less, the wholesale programs ordinarily use an automated valuation instead of a full appraisal. A higher CLTV may call for a second valuation. Every line above $500,000 requires a full appraisal, and you can request one on any line. NerdWallet notes that multiple appraisals may be required on investment-property lines at some lenders.

2. Apply the ceiling. Multiply the value by the CLTV ceiling that fits your occupancy and credit tier. The result is the total debt allowed on the property.

3. Subtract every lien. Take out the first mortgage and any other recorded liens. Lenders generally test the full credit limit, not the amount you have drawn. For the first mortgage, only the balance owed counts against the ceiling, and its rate or terms add no room.

4. Apply dollar limits. Each program sets a minimum and maximum line. If the room left over falls below the minimum line, there may be no offer at all.

5. Run the borrower tests. A HELOC is underwritten on you: credit, DTI, equity, and title. On this network the maximum DTI is 50%. It drops to 45% for credit profiles from 600 to 679, and a ratio above 45% requires a 680 minimum. Lenders review your file on the interest-only payment calculated on the maximum draw, not on what you plan to borrow.

6. Collect documents. Expect ID, income documents, debt statements, the first-mortgage statement, the insurance declaration, the vesting deed, and the current lease.

The CFPB’s HELOC booklet describes the same method. The lender takes a percentage of the appraised value and subtracts the mortgage balance. The booklet’s 75 percent figure is only an illustration of the method, not a rule.

Worked example. Take a rental under a 70% ceiling, which is the investment-property ceiling on this network. With a first mortgage at 50% of value, you have 20% of value in room. At 55% the room is 15%, and at 65% it is 5%. On many rentals, 5% of value falls below the $25,000 minimum line, so the file may produce no offer.

Now compare a primary residence at 720 or better, where the ceiling reaches 90% CLTV. The same 50% first mortgage leaves 40% of value in room, subject to the line caps below. The difference comes from occupancy, not from the borrower’s effort.

What Ceilings Apply by Occupancy and Credit?

On this network, an investment property line caps at 70% CLTV. A second-home line reaches 90% CLTV, and a primary-residence line reaches 90% CLTV. The 90% figure applies only at a 720 or better credit profile. Occupancy sets the ceiling before credit does.

These are typical ranges from select wholesale lenders, subject to lender guidelines and full file review. They are not a commitment to lend. The table shows only part of the credit ladder. Intermediate tiers exist, such as 80% CLTV at 640 or better on a primary residence.

Credit does not always buy more leverage. On the investment tier, a 700 and a 720 reach the same 70% ceiling. The minimum credit profile for an investment line is 700, while second homes start at 640 and primary residences at 600.

For context, NerdWallet’s guidance on investment-property lines describes typical bank-style criteria. It cites DTI of 40% to 50%, at least 20% equity, and six months or more of reserves. On this network the investment ceiling is 70% CLTV and the DTI maximum is 50%.

How Do Draw Structures and Line Sizes Work?

These lines are standalone credit lines that can sit in first or second lien position. Two draw structures exist, and each comes from a different wholesale program. The shorter-runway program uses a 3-year interest-only draw followed by a 17-year repayment. The longer-runway program uses a 5-year interest-only draw followed by a 25-year fully amortizing repayment. Investment lines run only on that 5-year draw and 25-year repayment structure.

Pricing floats across both the draw and repayment periods and never converts to fixed. At least 75% of the line is drawn at closing, so the revolving feature is more limited than the name suggests. Where a program states a minimum for later draws, it is typically $1,000. The CFPB notes that a borrower who falls behind could lose the home. On a rental, the home at risk is the rental.

Line sizes run from $25,000 to $750,000. A line above $500,000 is limited to primary residences, caps at 75% CLTV, and requires a full appraisal. It also requires a credit profile of 700 or better (720 on the longer-runway program). An investment line never goes above $500,000.

Where Does the General Rule Break?

The general rule is value times ceiling minus liens. These named edge cases change the result.

Title in an LLC. Fee simple or leasehold title must sit with the individual borrower or an inter vivos revocable living trust. LLCs, corporations, partnerships, and irrevocable, blind, or land trusts cannot hold title. A rental already deeded to an LLC needs a vesting change or a different product, and that is the sharpest structural difference from a DSCR loan.

Property types. Single-family homes, 2-4 units, PUDs, townhomes, and condominiums, including non-warrantable ones, are eligible. Modular factory-built homes are eligible on the longer-runway program only. The 2-4 unit type needs a 640 minimum on that program. Manufactured homes, co-ops, condotels, log homes, commercial, mixed-use, and agriculturally zoned properties are not offered.

Listed for sale. In a number of states, a property that is listed for sale, or was listed within the past 60 days, is ineligible.

Exposure limits. A borrower is limited to three lines. A borrower with more than 15 financed properties is not eligible.

Credit history. Credit is pulled from a single bureau score keyed to the primary wage earner. The report can be no more than 90 days old at closing, and rescores are not allowed. A bankruptcy needs four years of seasoning from discharge or dismissal. For foreclosure history, one program seasons a foreclosure at seven years and a short sale, deed-in-lieu, or pre-foreclosure at four. The other program declines the history entirely, regardless of age.

Availability. The HELOC programs are available in 16 full-service states, which is narrower than Lendmire’s 41-market DSCR footprint, Washington, D.C. included.

Lender pool. NerdWallet says that not all lenders offer HELOCs on investment properties and that requirements are strict. Some lenders use a different product name for a line secured by a rental. That is one reason a broker that shops several lenders matters here.

Rent as a qualifier. On a standard HELOC, rent usually plays a supporting role. The line is sized from equity, not from the lease, so a lease ending does not change the sizing. Rent becomes the main qualifier only on DSCR-style products.

HELOC or DSCR Cash-Out: Which Fits?

A HELOC and a DSCR cash-out refinance solve the same problem in opposite ways. One is built around you, and the other is built around the property.

A HELOC leaves your first mortgage in place and adds a second claim on the property. It is underwritten on your credit, DTI, and equity, and its pricing floats. A DSCR cash-out refinance replaces the first mortgage. It qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines.

Across most of the network, a DSCR cash-out on a standard rental tops out around 75% LTV, and about six months of seasoning is the common expectation. The coverage ratio floor is where select programs start, commonly 1.00. A separate select-lender path takes coverage below 1.00, with leverage and terms adjusted. Clearing 1.00 does not mean the property cash flows, because repairs, vacancy, management, utilities, and capital expenses sit outside the calculation.

DSCR loans can also close in an LLC, subject to lender program eligibility. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide covers how those programs work in full.

Two things usually push the decision. If the rental sits in an LLC, a HELOC cannot attach without a vesting change, which points toward DSCR. If you want to keep a first mortgage you already hold, a HELOC adds capital without replacing it. Lendmire’s piece Top Investment Property HELOC Providers With a High Maximum Loan-to-Value goes deeper on the investment tier. For owner-occupied homes, its article Top HELOC Providers To Borrow Up to 90% of Your Home’s Value covers the top tier.

How Do You Find the Right Program?

Start by naming the occupancy of the property, because that sets the ceiling. Then check the credit tier, the first-mortgage balance, and the vesting. A broker that shops several wholesale lenders compares those facts against each program’s rules instead of working from one lender’s menu.

Across the wholesale network, the strictest overlays tend to sit on property type, vesting, and credit history, while the CLTV ceiling follows occupancy. A file can clear the leverage test and still miss on title or credit seasoning. Running through the checklist below before applying avoids a mismatch with a program.

Use this checklist before any application:

• Confirm whether the property is an investment property, a second home, or a primary residence.
• Add your first-mortgage balance and any other liens.
• Multiply value by the ceiling for your occupancy and credit tier, then subtract the liens.
• Check the result against the $25,000 minimum line and the $500,000 cap on investment lines.
• Confirm title is held by you or a revocable living trust.
• Check the property type against the eligible list.
• Keep in mind that a floating price applies for the whole life of the line.

An illustrative calculator on the site can help with the first pass. It is an estimate, not a quote.

What Is the Next Step?

If you are considering a home equity line and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare HELOC options based on the property, the equity available, your credit profile, combined leverage, and your goals. Call 828-256-2183 to talk through your file. Every figure here is subject to lender guidelines and full file review, and none of it is a commitment to lend.

About Lendmire

Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage broker. Home equity lines of credit — on a primary residence, a second home or an investment property — are arranged through wholesale lenders in Lendmire’s 16 full-service states, and every line is underwritten by the lender under its program guidelines. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.

References

1. CFPB’s explanation of a HELOC

2. NerdWallet – HELOC on an investment property

3. CFPB HELOC booklet