Home Equity Lines of Credit allow the borrower to draw as many times as they need to for seven years and then allows another ten or fifteen years after that to pay off the balance.

​

​Remember to stamp or type your lender NMLS and the credit union's NMLS (#407980) on the HELOC application, loan note, and DOT prior to recording. Record the DOT the same day that the borrower(s) sign the DOT. 

​

Order the Valuation documents through the Coviance website, as well as the Flood Certification. If the Flood Cert comes back as "Yes", contact Stephanie to make sure that we track the insurance properly and the correct documents are signed. 

​

The minimum payment is calculated at 1% of the monthly balance (on the last day of the month), or $100, whichever is greater.

​

​​​​

​

​

​

​

 

                               

                                      Floor Rate: 4.5%                  Ceiling Rate: 15.0%

​​​

Rates are variable and are adjusted on January 1st, April 1st, July 1st and October 1st, based on the Prime Rate as published in the Wall Street Journal 20 days prior to the quarterly rate change.

 

Rates remain variable throughout the entire term of the HELOC, including both the draw period and repayment term.

 

We cannot half the mortgage payment on HELOCs like we can on consumer loans. The debt ratio needs to work with their full mortgage payment and the new HELOC payment. 
 
Members within 10 points of a higher FICO category with at least 3 years of loan history with Connections, and no delinquency, can be bumped to the higher category. Members who are a Thin File or have had a Recent BK cannot be bumped, as per Loan Review rules.  

​

HELOCs between $100,001-$150,000 must be approved by the Director of Lending, CLO or CEO.

​

HELOCs over $150,000 must be approved by the CLO or CEO.

​

​

FAQs

​

Q:  If I get an error or "No hit" result when pulling an AVM, what do I do?

    A: If you receive the response of “no hit” you can try again using All AVM Vendors. No-hit means the specified vendor was not able to pull a valuation on the address entered. If you do not receive a hit from any of the vendors, reach out to GinGar or Lindsay. We might need to order

​

Q: Who does appraisal and PCR reviews?

    A: The Indirect department does these reviews. When Coviance sends you the email telling you the PCR is completed, forward that email to Indirect@connectidaho.org. One of them will send you the completed PCR review form.

​

Q: I got an email from Coviance asking for permission to charge an additional fee for processing a PCR, what do I do?

    A: Contact GinGar, Lindsay or Stephanie.

​​​

Q: What title company do I use?

    A: Each branch has their own preference, but any title company can be used. Most branches use either Flying S or Alliance.

​

Q: Can we do a HELOC on a property in a county outside of our membership?

    A: Yes, we can process HELOCs anywhere in the state of Idaho, as long as the owners qualify for membership.

​

Q: Can we do a HELOC on a property outside of Idaho?

    A: No, we cannot, even for existing members.

​

Q: If Forza has the incorrect rate, but the Addendum has the correct rate, do I have to use a Sub Action to fix it?

    A: As long as the Addendum is correct, the rate can just be fixed in Forza without a Sub Action.

​

Q: Can a HELOC due date be any date other than the 15th?

    A: No, all HELOC due dates need to be set to the 15th of the month due to the way Forza needs to calculate the minimum payment. This cannot be changed.  (See HELOC Payment Explanation form on the HELOC page.)

​

Q: When does a HELOC payment for the next month change after a payment is made in the current month?

    A: Payments are recalculated on the last day of the month. (See HELOC Payment Explanation form on the HELOC page.)

​

Q: Can we use a half mortgage payment in the debt ratio of a HELOC?

    A: No. We have to be very careful on DTI exceptions and calculations on HELOC loans.

​

Q: How do I fix errors in the notary on a Deed of Trust?​

    A:

• For errors on the notary's name, cross out the incorrect name with a single line and write the correct name and initial next to it. Then re-record the DOT.

• For errors on the date, cross out the incorrect date with a single line and write the correct date and the notary should initial next to the correction. Then re-record the DOT.

​

Q: What is the Mortgagee (lienholder) name/address?

    A: Connections Credit Union, ISAOA

         PO Box 4909

         Pocatello, ID 83205

​

​Q: When do we need the Taxpayer Authorization and Consent Document signed by the member?

    A: Only when we used income from Self-Employment. This form is the member authorizing us to obtain their taxes for use in underwriting the loan.

​

Q: When the 7-year-draw period is up on a HELOC, how does the member extend the draw period?

    A: In order to renew the 7-year-draw period, we need to do a Modification, which is processing a new HELOC in Forza and gathering new reports and document, just like a new HELOC, but with doing a Modification to the Deed of Trust instead of a new Deed of Trust.​

​

Q: When processing a Modification to a HELOC what documents can be reused?

   A: It depends:

• If the previous loan was done within the previous 11 months, the valuation documents from the previous loan can be used again.

• A new Deed & Encumbrance report is always needed for a Modification.

• We used to allow the Flood Cert from the original loan to be used for the Modified loan docs, but thanks to a recent Audit, we need to pull a new Flood Cert for every modification.

​​

​