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First Access Lending: 2026 Home Equity Review

Written by

Linda Bell,

Edited by

Katie Lowery

Expert verified

Updated on Mar 03, 2026

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NMLS: 1403

Bankrate score

4.4

Our methodology

Customer score

4.3

Read reviews

SCORE BREAKDOWN

Affordability

5.0

Availability

4.6

Borrower experience

3.8

EDITOR'S TAKE

If you’re comfortable with a fully digital process and don’t have a standard borrower profile, First Access Lending could be worth a look. This young online lender has set itself apart in the home equity finance space by offering products that many others don’t, like alternative-document loans and high maximum loan amounts. That said, First Access has limited reach and lacks transparency about its rates and product offerings.

PROS

• Home equity loans let you borrow up to 90% of your home’s value
• First Access Lending’s HELOC and home equity loan maximum is $1 million
• Offers standard HELOCs and home equity loans in addition to other second-lien products

CONS

• Lacks national reach (only available in 16 states and Washington, D.C.)
• Website has minimal information on home equity products and associated costs
• Requires that you draw 100% of the line for HELOCs

Affordability

5.0

Availability

4.6

Borrower experience

3.8

• Home equity loans let you borrow up to 90% of your home’s value
• First Access Lending’s HELOC and home equity loan maximum is $1 million
• Offers standard HELOCs and home equity loans in addition to other second-lien products

• Lacks national reach (only available in 16 states and Washington, D.C.)
• Website has minimal information on home equity products and associated costs
• Requires that you draw 100% of the line for HELOCs

Find competitive home equity rates near you

First Access Lending home equity overview

Founded in 2023, Baltimore-based First Access Lending was established with the goal of increasing access to homeownership wealth. The small full-service lending platform operates through East Coast Capital, an independent bank with more than 25 years of mortgage-industry experience. In addition to conventional and non-QM (qualified mortgage) loans, the company partners with investors to offer the following home equity products:

HELOCs: First Access Lending’s HELOCs have three 20-year term options: a 3-year draw period followed by a 17-year repayment period, a 5-year draw followed by a 15-year repayment and a 10-year draw followed by a 10-year repayment period. You can access up to 85% of your home’s value.
Home equity loans: First Access offers 20- or 30-year fixed-rate home equity loans. HELOCs and home equity loans start at a minimum of $50,000 and go as high as $1 million. You may qualify to borrow up to 90% of your home’s value with a home equity loan.

First Access also offers the following home equity products:

1st lien HELOCs
Investment property and second-home HELOCs and HELOANs
Alternative-document HELOCs and closed-end second mortgages: 1099-only, WVOE (Written Verification of Employment) loans and DSCR (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) loans

How Bankrate scored First Access Lending

Affordability: 5 stars

First Access earns a perfect 5 out of 5 stars for affordability for its low APR and minimal fees, offering buyers significant cost savings.

APR: At this writing, First Access Lending’s lowest HELOC APR was about one and a half points below the Bankrate national average. And this was a regular rate, not a temporary introductory offer. The longer the draw period, the higher the interest rate you will have to pay.
Fees: First Access Lending’s HELOCs and home equity loans don’t have any prepayment penalties or annual fees. However, origination fees typically range from $2,000 to $3,000, depending on the loan amount and your home state.

Availability: 4.3 stars

First Access offers a variety of home equity products with competitive credit score requirements, but they're dinged for their high minimum loan amounts, draw requirement and limited reach, earning them a 4.3 out of 5 for availability.

Licensing: First Access is licensed to operate only in a third of the country (CT, DC, DE, FL, MD, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV, WI and WY).
Credit score: 620 for First Access home equity loans and 660 for HELOCs, lower than some other lenders require.
Loan minimum: HELOC and home equity loans start at $50,000, which is higher than what most other lenders offer.
Draw requirement: First Access requires you to withdraw the entire HELOC line at closing, but allows you to put everything you don’t need back on the line when the first payment is due.

Borrower experience: 3.8 stars

First Access scores a 3.8 out of 5 stars for borrower experience because of unposted rates, limited contact options and a lack of physical locations.

Rate transparency: First Access doesn’t post home equity loan or HELOC rates. To receive an emailed quote, you must call them or answer more than a dozen questions online, including the type of loan you want, how much equity you want to access, your address, your credit score and other details.
Customer service: You have three ways to begin the loan application process at First Access: by phone (888-885-7789), via email (info@firstaccesslending.com) or by submitting a web form.
Convenience: The company operates solely online, which can be convenient for digital-first borrowers, but less than ideal for homeowners who prefer face-to-face support.

How easy is it to contact First Access Lending?

It isn't very easy to reach a live person by phone at First Access Lending. Multiple calls to its listed contact number went unanswered, with only an automated message prompting callers to leave a voicemail. Also, when using their web form, there’s no option to connect to a live agent. Instead, you are directed to schedule a time to speak with someone. Email appears to be one of the quickest ways to get information. Within hours, the company responded promptly to a series of questions

First Access Lending’s reputation

At this time, First Access Lending does not seem to be rated by the Better Business Bureau or TrustPilot.

To determine a mortgage lender’s Bankrate Score, Bankrate rates lenders on a scale of one (1) to five (5) stars — with five (5) the highest rating — based on a variety of factors relating to the lender’s products and services. To assign our ratings, we assessed each mortgage lender across three core areas:
- Affordability: Annual percentage rate (APR) - 80%; introductory APR - 20%
- Availability: Licensing - 50%; credit score - 20%; loan minimum - 10%; draw requirement - 10%; loan products - 10%
- Borrower experience: Rate transparency - 35%; convenience - 35%; customer service - 20%; fixed-rate options - 10%
Learn more about our methodology.

Compare First Access Lending with other lenders

Selected lender First Access Lending NMLS: 1403 Bankrate score 4.4 Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Interest rates, fees, loan terms, borrower requirements and customer service are some of the factors that make up Bankrate's score. Customer score 4.3 Star ranking and total number reflects the lifetime customer reviews received while this lender has been an advertiser on Bankrate. To help serve you with relevant information, the customer reviews shown are limited to only those that this advertiser has received during the past 12 months.	Bankrate score Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Interest rates, fees, loan terms, borrower requirements and customer service are some of the factors that make up Bankrate's score. Customer score Star ranking and total number reflects the lifetime customer reviews received while this lender has been an advertiser on Bankrate. To help serve you with relevant information, the customer reviews shown are limited to only those that this advertiser has received during the past 12 months. Read review	Bankrate score Bankrate scores are objectively determined by our editorial team. Interest rates, fees, loan terms, borrower requirements and customer service are some of the factors that make up Bankrate's score. Customer score Star ranking and total number reflects the lifetime customer reviews received while this lender has been an advertiser on Bankrate. To help serve you with relevant information, the customer reviews shown are limited to only those that this advertiser has received during the past 12 months. Read review
Loan amount
Undisclosed
Min. credit score required
Undisclosed
Repayment terms
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Funds available in
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Recent customer review
Excellent Service from Start to Finish James, Jake, and the entire team were outstanding throughout my HELOC process. They were knowledgeable, responsive, and took the time to clearly explain every step, which made the... Amer

To help you make the most informed decisions, our home equity lender reviews team suggests an alternative home equity lender for each lender reviewed. In most cases, this alternative 1.) shares the same strength (affordability, availability or borrower experience) as the lender reviewed; and 2.) rates highly for Bankrate Score. In the event more than one lender meets these standards, we suggest the one with the higher Bankrate Score.

First Access Lending customer ratings and reviews

NMLS: 1403

4.3

11 ratings

Knowledge

Level of service

Professionalism

Responsiveness

82% of customers would recommend this lender.

of 11 reviews

The consumer reviews posted on Bankrate.com ("Bankrate") are individual, subjective opinions of reviewers, and not of Bankrate. Bankrate does not endorse any of the opinions expressed by reviewers or any responses to reviews.

Bankrate cannot guarantee or verify the accuracy of the opinions shared by individual reviewers, and reserves the right to reject or remove any review, at any time, for any reason at Bankrate’s sole discretion, including but not limited to those that Bankrate deems inappropriate, fraudulent, invalid, irrelevant, or otherwise outside the parameters of the Bankrate Review Guidelines, the Privacy Policy, or the Terms of Use.

To help serve you with relevant information, the consumer reviews shown below are limited to only those that this advertiser has received during the past 12 months.

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