How To Find The Right HELOC in South Florida
In this video Denzel Rodriguez, a personal‑finance advisor, walks viewers through selecting a second‑position home‑equity line of credit (HELOC) in South Florida. He explains the broader "velocity" strategy of using HELOCs, personal loans, or credit cards to accelerate debt payoff or generate income by leveraging other people’s money. He then presents a consistent evaluation framework—credit score ≥ 720, debt‑to‑income ≤ 30‑45 %, loan‑to‑value 70‑90 %, low or zero closing costs, attractive intro rates (1.99‑5.99 % for 6‑12 months), draw periods of 10‑20 years, mobile‑banking integration, and payment‑type considerations (interest‑only vs principal‑and‑interest). Using this framework he reviews six South‑Florida credit unions/banks (Space Coast, BrightStar, Sun, Flagler, Power Financial, First Choice), detailing each product’s rate structure, LTV limits, draw period, fees, and mobile features, and highlights his top three picks (Space Coast, First Choice, Flagler). He also lists several honorable‑mention institutions with brief rate/feature notes and advises viewers to verify details, build banking relationships, and consider branch proximity. The video concludes with a promotion of his coaching program, outlining tangible benefits such as tax‑filing credits, insurance, estate‑planning assistance, and access to his team.
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Welcome back. My name is Denzel Rodriguez, your personal finance geek of the 21st century, and today we're discussing how to find the right home equity line of credit in the second position in the state of Florida, specifically South Florida. In this HELOC series, we're going state by state, covering every single state, taking deep dives, doing the research, showing you my work, and helping you find the right tool so that you can implement the velocity strategy of leveraging a home equity line of credit, maybe a line of credit, personal line of credit, business line of credit, even credit cards to either accelerate your debt faster than extra payments, debt snowball, traditional extra payment strategies, and/or leverage debt to create more income in your life by taking on risk, leveraging other people's money. So there's two different ways that you can go about doing it. Specifically, we're just looking at identifying the right home equity line of credit products. This is a major hiccup, mistake that I often see people make, obtaining the wrong home equity line of credit with a major bank or a mortgage institution, a mortgage brokerage that's not actually a bank. And so they don't possess all of the necessary functions that we would like to have in a HELOC when you're implementing this specific strategy of being able to park all of your income in, take expenses out, and create this velocity effect. So with that being said, we're in the state of South Florida. I'm going to break this— I'm going to break the state into two videos since Florida is pretty big. So I'm covering pretty much Broward County, right? Even sprinkled in West Palm, you can, you can add them in there, Palm Beach, all the way down to Miami and really as far south as it goes. I found these banks cover the whole state of Florida, but ideally they're located all in the South Florida, Broward, Miami area. Area, and let's begin. So taking a look at the whiteboard, left-hand side is our framework, which, if you've been following this series, stays the same. It is now April 8th, 2026, as I'm recording this video. I've covered about half of the United States so far. We got a few more states to go. We've seen interest rates go down since the beginning of me starting this series back in towards the end of 2025, and yet the framework has remained the same. I want to see credit score at 720 or higher, preferably. I want to see your DTI at 30% or less, no more than 45. LTV options— if you stay between 70 and 90%, you're typically going to get the best rate offer. The higher you go in terms of LTV, specifically looking at your property, the higher risk the bank has to take on, which would result in a higher interest rate that you'd be given. When it comes to closing costs, I love seeing zero or low, $500 or less preferably. There's some states that just have these third— every state has third-party fees when you obtain a home equity line of credit, and it's up to the bank's discretion if they're going to give you a credit or if they're just gonna waive all those fees altogether. Intro rate is nice to have. In this environment today, we're seeing intro rates as low as 1.99%. I've done series where it was 0%, but only for a short period. The typical range you're gonna see right now is between 1.99% and 5.99%, and between 6 and 12 months is most common. Although you will find HELOCs where you can get a fixed Home equity line of credit, depending on your interest rate and DTI, for about 3 to 5 years. And if you can get that rate below prime— prime's at 6.75% today— if you can get a point below prime today, that's very, very advantageous because it just sort of fits in where we're at in the economy today. You know, rates could go up, but they could also go down slightly more. But I really don't see in this current administration, I don't see interest rates going much lower anytime soon. I, I know they have a desire to, to lower rates, but just with what's going on around the world, I just don't see that happening as fast. And I definitely don't see rates going down if we switch back to a Democratic administration going into 2028. I really don't see rates going down any lower than where they've gone down since under this current administration, right? We were as high as prime being like 8.5, almost 9% back in '23, 2023, 2024. And then we began to see rates drop toward the end of '24 going into '25. We've seen rates drop about 2 points so far. All right. Interest calculation is important. When you call the bank, you want to ask, how is my rate determined? Is it prime minus, prime plus, or just prime? You're going to see that language when you're on these different websites. The draw period between 10 and 20 years. I want to see you build a relationship with that bank, meaning become a member, open up a checking and savings before applying, establish that relationship that really solidifies the highest approval chance when obtaining this particular product. Mobile banking is important. It increases velocity, meaning if I can have my HELOC and my checking account linked together so they communicate, I can go into the mobile app and I can make an instant transfer to and from. I don't have to write a check, or I don't have to call, or I don't have to go in person. That's extremely valuable, especially in today's digital world that we're in. Lastly is the payment option. Is it an interest-only HELOC or is it a principal and interest HELOC payment? If it's interest-only, sometimes that may result in a higher overall rate that they give you. So ask the question, is there an incentive for me to pick the principal and interest payment HELOC over the interest only. If there's no incentive from a disciplinary standpoint, I typically recommend people go with the principal and interest payment. If you already have that discipline, you spend less than what you make, you're a good steward of your money, and you're trying to minimize that required payment knowing that you're going to be doing this strategy, so you're dumping all your income in anyways, and there's no disadvantage to interest-only HELOCs, go ahead, make that decision for yourself. Okay, I identified 6 banks that I like, one that I actually do business with, where I actually bank with, and the others I've just known for years. I live in the state of Florida, so very familiar with these banks. These right now, from what I've done done in my own research are providing the most competition right now with their home equity line of credit products. So starting with Space Coast Credit Union, they're doing a 4.24% intro rate for the first 12 months. You can get an interest rate as low as prime minus 0.5%, no closing costs as long as the credit line is under $250,000, and it's a 7-year draw period, mobile banking friendly. We like that. BrightStar Credit Union is prime -0.25%, 80% LTV. Uh, I forgot to write with Space Coast, it is 70% LTV to get all these details here. BrightStar is 80% LTV, prime -0.25%, $250K max, no closing costs, also mobile banking friendly. and this is also the bank that I have been doing business with since 2015, 2016. I got my first PLOC at BrightStar Credit Union before I even knew what velocity strategy even was. So that's pretty cool. Little history there. Sun Credit Union is doing a 3.99% intro rate for the first 12 months, 90% LTV, 10-year draw. Mobile banking friendly. They provide a $1,000 closing credit, no annual fee, but here it is, Prime Plus. So that 3.99% comes at a cost on the back end. Flagler Credit Union is doing 4.99% for only 6 months with— but with a prime minus 0.5%, 10-year draw, no closing costs. Mobile banking friendly. Power Financial Credit Union is offering— out of everyone here is offering a fixed home equity line of credit between 6.74% and 8.74%, 3 to 5 years. Their variable product, prime minus 0.25%, 10-year draw, mobile banking friendly, another closing cost credit. Up to $1,000. Finally, we have First Choice Credit Union. They're doing a prime minus 1% fixed home equity line of credit product, 6.125%, 80% LTV, mobile banking friendly, $250 grand max credit line, 10-year draw. Really attractive. My top picks are Space Coast, First Choice, and Flagler. Now you're going to have to verify if you live in the state of Florida, just verify this information because sometimes the way they display things on the websites can be a little bit confusing. And so what I'm going to do now is simply just share my screen. I'm going to give you some honorable mentions that, uh, didn't make it to the whiteboard. But they're honorable mentions that if you were to choose this bank, okay, but I'd rather you, you know, pick the ones that I've curated for you, especially if you live in South Florida and you're looking to obtain a home equity line of credit. So with that being said, let me go ahead and share my screen with you. This is what I do all day long. I will type in credit unions in South Florida that offer a home equity line of credit. All right, now let me shrink myself a little bit here. I'm not overtaking the screen. Yeah, we'll go like that. And I basically let the AI mode give me some stuff. Usually right here they'll give a lot of banks. And then typically I'll scroll all the way down. I'll even go to page 2 to get me the best stuff. So honorable mention, we got Velocity Community Credit Union. They have a 10-year draw home equity line of credit at prime, as low as just prime. Not bad. Space Coast, obviously they have different products. Keep in mind, to get the best offer, which is that 7-year draw period, 4.24%, as low as 6.25% afterwards. So that's the prime minus 0.5%. And then the LTV— no, I read it somewhere, somewhere— I believe it was 70%. You can quote me on that. BrightStar, this is who I bank with for many years now. Sun Credit Union, boom, information right there. We got Flagler, they got their offer as you see here, and Power Financial Credit Union. I think they have two kinds of products. Yeah, so they have a first lien and a second lien option. We're specifically focusing on the second lien, 70% LTV. So that's with Power Financial Credit Union. I did not put that on the board. So let me go ahead and write that. So that was 70% LTV with them. Beautiful. First Choice. Okay, so they do a first lien HELOC as well and a second. We go check rates. Here we go. So that's their first position product, home equity second position. We got this 5.5%, 5.85%, 6.125%. Now we have to be careful because I don't know if home equity second position means home equity loan, because then they have a distinction right here, home equity line of credit. So if it's an adjustable home equity line of credit, I don't know what 2-3-4-5 means. I'm assuming that's adjustable for the first 2, 3, 4, 5 years is what I'm guessing. 720 credit score or higher, you can get as low as 5.75%. So that's why I wrote prime minus 1%. If you give me the variable product, if you get a second position fixed 2-4-5-11, Again, I'm assuming that means the draw period, 2 years, 4 years, 5 years. I don't think the 11 part— I'm like, okay, maybe it's, maybe it's 2, 4, 5 years fixed, 11-year payback. Could be something like that. As low as 6.125%. So I'm not upset about that. If you wanted to like lock in a rate and depending on your financial position that might make sense. Okay, and let me— again, I'm like, I'm in the way, so forgive me. Let's move me down a little bit. Yeah, so you get a better view. So it's worth calling. Then with the roomie off, was this right here. It says no insurance home equity, and the rates looked even better. So I'm like, what does that mean? No insurance home equity, 2.458%, 720 or higher, 5.125%, and then 5.5%. I mean, that's— these are insane numbers. I mean, there's mortgages higher than this right now in the economy. So if you got good credit and you're thinking about refinancing your mortgage into another mortgage, 30-year, may want to consider restructuring into a flexible revolving line of credit. And if you can lock in a fixed rate at 5.125%, 5.5%, nearly a point below prime, and your mortgage is sitting at 6%, your closing costs on a HELOC compared to your closing costs on a refi, night and day, night and day. Plus you have the liquidity. And with the velocity strategy, if we can get it knocked off within 5 to 10 years, you're sitting very pretty. Okay. So I just wanted to share that with you. Again, very, very important to call these, these banks. These are just some honorable mentions in my research. We got We Florida Credit Union. I didn't really see anything attractive. NPS Credit Union. Now, whatever, whatever. I guess, you know, they offer a pretty big line. Eh. EdFed, I found. I also found Jetstream Federal Credit Union. They do— this is what caught my eye— 2.99% for the first 6 months. Rates as low as prime plus 0.25%. Not horrible. Honorable mention. Don't get this confused for Sun Credit Union. This is Suncoast Credit Union, different bank. Rates as low as prime. Nothing crazy. No annual fees, transaction fees. Suncoast pays up to $1,000 credit. Cool, cool, cool. 10-year draw. Not bad, not bad. And then you got Members First Credit Union of Florida. Didn't give too much info, but we got $200K max, 10-year draw, no closing costs, variable interest rate based on the prime rate. If we go to see rates, home equity line. We're looking at right at prime. Good stuff. So if you live in South Florida, that is my research for you. Hopefully that helps. Again, I'm going to break this Florida in up to 2 videos. So I'm going to cover North Florida and Central Florida. I'm gonna put you guys together. And if you're on the west side of Florida, The— if you're on the Southwest side of Florida, these banks listed can also apply. There might even be locations on your, on your side as well. If you can find something equivalent, like if you're in Naples, Florida, for example, and you want to find a bank that's within driving distance, then use these details, these standards, these, these competitive rates and intro rates and things like that. See if you can beat what my research did. And I would say if you can beat me or match it, great, then that's more advantage to you because you have a bank that's, that's close by, especially if you're someone that still likes to go to the bank. If you don't, if you could care less, then technically you could be anywhere in the state of Florida and become a member at one of these banks because most of these banks only do business in the state of Florida. Okay, and then vice versa. You live all the way in North Florida, Central Florida, I'm gonna do a video specifically for banks up there. But also keep in mind you can use South Florida banks and kind of compete for, for business. Like I said, the only disadvantage, if there's no branches around your location, then that could pose an issue for those that want to have a bank that they can go to at any time, speak to someone, things like that. Right. And for everyone else watching, I have a playlist, links below in the comments section where you can look for your state. If it's not listed, be patient. I will have every single state covered as it pertains to the second lien home equity line of credit. With that being said, my name is Denzel Rodriguez, your personal finance geek of the 21st century. If you need coaching, consulting, support one-on-one, you can follow the links below to my website. I have a new coaching program that just laid out. It's going to be— it's insane. It's got a multitude of tangibles and intangibles. Most financial coaching programs are intangible, not a bad thing. I just want to go the extra mile and provide you with tangibles. What are those, Denzel? Tangibles, meaning a credit towards your tax filing. A credit towards a tax strategy session, a credit towards getting some insurance coverage on yourself as it pertains to identity and legal protection, giving you a credit towards that, a credit towards getting your will, trust, estate planning documents, power of attorney, healthcare directive, a credit towards that as well. And access to all of my life's work over the last 8 years and access to my entire team of financial specialists in specific areas that we would— that I would bring in to have certain conversations in our coaching journey and accountability journey together to achieve financial freedom. All right, that was a mouthful. Check the links below. You can reach out to me anytime. Have a wonderful day. God bless, and we'll be talking soon.
