Should you use a home equity loan to pay off your debts?
It can be a smart strategy, provided you understand what you’re risking.
Karen Bennett is a senior consumer banking reporter at Bankrate. Her expertise lies in finding the best savings accounts, checking accounts and CDs, as well as all things personal finance. She also writes about home lending, including mortgages, refinancing and home equity. She’s been a reporter at Bankrate since 2021, and she holds a master’s degree in Journalism and a bachelor’s degree in English.
Karen’s writing experience spans topics including bank accounts, saving money, budgeting, and credit cards, and homeownership. She also spent time as a writer of product reviews and a reporter for local newspapers in Chicago, Milwaukee and Washington, D.C. In addition, she worked for over a decade as a writer and product manager for CoolSavings, a website devoted to saving money on groceries, travel and other products.
Karen stays on top of the latest in banking and mortgages. Topics she writes about for Bankrate include how to choose the best high-yield savings account, ways to protect yourself from bank fraud and how to lower your mortgage payment.
On the personal finance front, Karen has covered topics such as progress for women in banking.
When she’s not working, Karen enjoys working on her novel, as well as reading, cooking, traveling and spending time with her family.
The pillars of smart money management include having an emergency fund in a high-yield savings account, paying down debt, following a budget and living within your means.
— Karen Bennett
It can be a smart strategy, provided you understand what you’re risking.
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