[jhv48]

You only gamble with your house (which is what you are doing with a HELOC)
if you can afford to lose it!

Buying a toy or a vacation, or furniture, or a swimming pool using a HELOC is a gamble. You are betting that the interest rate (which is adjustable on a monthly basis) won't climb too high before you can either pay it off or re-fi the house to include it. Easy to do when values are climbing steadily. Tough to do today with values actually declining.

Millions of people gambled and are losing their homes because of it. If we learn nothing from this crisis, then we are doomed to repeat it.

Just don't expect me to come to your aid when you go belly up.

Banks invented the HELOC to entice us to spend our home equity on crap we can't afford otherwise. Next they will try and tap into our automobile equity in order to allow us to dig our hole even deeper.

Banks love debt. Ours, not theirs!

It's time to think outside the box. Obviously if banks want us to do it, it is good for THEM!