Thinking about a home improvement project? Knowing the needs of your project can help you choose the right type of financing.

Need to finance a home improvement project? There are several options available. Knowing the needs of your project can help you make the right financing choice.

Before you choose how to finance your home improvement project, consider just what your renovation entails. Are you just making cosmetic improvements to a dated bathroom? Ripping out wallpaper, painting, and replacing faucets? That isn’t going to require a major loan. However, if the plan is to gut your kitchen and replace everything, it may require some serious money. It’s smart to know how much money your home improvement requires and when you’ll need to make payments before deciding how to finance your renovation.

Here are some of the choices available.

Using home equity
For major renovations, you may need a significant loan. Your home equity is a great resource to for securing financing. If you have built up equity in your home, you can access it in a variety of ways.

• Cash-out refinancing – If you have substantial equity in your home, you can refinance to a mortgage with a higher loan amount. The lender cashes out the difference and pays that equity to you. You can then use that to finance your home improvement project.
• Home equity loan – Another option for using your home equity to finance a home improvement project is through a home equity loan. Instead of refinancing the first mortgage, a home equity loan lets you use your equity for a second mortgage. The money comes in one lump sum. A home equity loan typically has lower closing costs than a first mortgage, but may have a higher interest rate.
• Home equity line of credit – A HELOC is a revolving line of credit secured against your home’s value. If your home improvement project is DIY or a pay-as-you-go project, a HELOC can work for you. You access the money as you need it, usually through a checkbook or credit card attached to the loan.

Using a personal loan or line of credit
For less costly home improvement projects, consider a personal loan or line of credit. It’s not secured against your home, which means a higher interest rate, but it also means you aren’t tapping into your home equity unnecessarily. This type of loan is also not going to help you out with the taxman – it’s not tax deductible whereas the choices above typically are.

Using a credit card
A creative way to finance a renovation is through a credit card.