HELOC's aren't a very common product here on this forum but just posting this for anyone who is considering them since it's a popular CU for auto loans, and likely should be for HELOC's too unless you need the money right now... in which case a HELOC isn't likely the best solution anyway.
The top rate for DCU's HELOC is currently 3.25% (Prime + 0.25%), but the beautiful thing is that the FICO score required to reach that (Equifax Beacon 5.0 aka FICO 5 here) is a 675. Note: if you go for the HEL (home equity loan) the minimum score is a 700... currently, both are admittedly subject to change if someone stumbles on this in the future, but I simply asked and they told me, so likely you can inquire too. They only pull this score, it is not the standard tri-merge report found in mortgages for the HELOC.
In my review of rates, 3.25% was a darned good rate anyway, but obtaining that with my unpretty credit file is astoundingly excellent (the 693 I've been sitting at for most of the last 2 years, no problem!)
Closing time: was told they'd get it done within 45 days; it basically took them 30 days to get the file to the UW, which wasn't a big concern for me and it came right back with nothing other than my needing to acknowledge via email that I accepted it. My LP was switched somewhere during this and that might've extended the time required to be fair to them and it was a 3rd party processor (not sure about UW). Hasn't finalized yet but there's no skeletons buried here and I'm not expecting any last minute trauma.
Application: this was a little weird as mortgage / home equity line / home equity line of credit were all conflated under the mortgage application; don't sweat it, as long as you picked the right product going in, just fill it out normally (it's the same information anyway other than purchase price I did expected appraised value) and it does work out in the end.
Documentation required: full monty initial mortgage documentation set, but none of the LOE's I had to write for a mortgage; was the question about my W2's from my current employer as years past didn't match current income (since I went from part time to full time) which a phone call was sufficient on that one rather than a signed letter as every full mortgage app wanted in my experience; in addition, apparently the condo insurance certification which I sent through was for 2015, which they caught so it wasn't simply stamped through. Fixed that and went on with life. Wasn't the most sophisticated document submission application but it was functional if not the most intuitive (multiple W2's just upload one at a time, it's not overwriting the previous one if you upload a new one).
Appraisal: some combination of analytic / driveby appraisal, didn't need to come inside like a full appraisal would have; the number looks suspiciously like a ZEstimate heh. On the plus side, they didn't bill me for an appraisal at all.
Amount: They'll allow up to 80% LTV; however, since my mortgage was issued within the last year they took the lower of the two values between the purchase price, and the appraisal which was markedly higher. Not a big deal for me as I am expecting to simply use this like a low APR credit card for recurring tuition payments (since my school sadly will not accept a credit card directly, lame) and the 27K and change limit is just fine there, ain't skeered about FICO impact of it's definitely counting for revolving utilization with the buffer I have now personally.
Anyway overall it was an easy and successful experience and the rate was worth a LOT more hassle than this for me; people that are gold plated have a lot more options and quite possibly some better ones, but if you're a mixed file playing in the middle tiers like I do, DCU's definitely worth checking out on this product.
