What can I do if my lender changes HELOC terms before I open the account?

When you apply for a HELOC, the CFPB says the lender must give key facts about terms and costs. That package includes the length of the draw and repayment periods, lender fees, an estimate of third-party closing charges such as an appraisal, how the minimum payment is figured, and how the annual percentage rate may change.

The creditor must refund all fees you paid if you say you do not want the account — for any reason within three business days after those application disclosures, or at any time before the account opens if any disclosed term changes. That refund rule is the CFPB's description of what the creditor must do; it is not advice to open or reject a particular line.

If the home securing the HELOC is your principal dwelling, the CFPB says you may cancel for any reason within three business days after account opening or after receipt of the account-opening disclosures, using the later of those two dates. The notice must be in writing within that period. The lender must then return the fees paid to open the line, including fees paid to third parties. This is general information about the disclosure and cancellation rights the CFPB describes, not legal advice about a specific HELOC.