Unlock Technologies Success Story: Kevin

Unlock’s Home Equity Agreement Helps Stop the Spiral of Debt

“I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.” 

That’s the bottom line from Kevin, a retired North Carolina resident who worked with Unlock to access his home equity. 

Kevin found himself in a situation familiar to many Americans: dealing with serious credit card debt. When he relocated from a northern state to North Carolina in 2018, the former law enforcement professional and U.S. Air Force veteran turned to credit cards to pay for moving costs, new furnishings and even some basic living expenses since most of his cash on hand was going toward a down payment on the new house. 

Then, when his son went through a layoff at work and was without income for a period, Kevin stepped in to help. The credit card debt mounted as a result – to the point where, he says, he was “living on credit.” He even took out a personal loan and got a part-time job to try and make ends meet. But he couldn’t escape the spiral of debt. 

Digging a debt hole 

“I didn’t think I’d ever get out,” he says. “I was digging a deeper and deeper hole.” 

By 2024, Kevin knew he had to take action. He also knew that, thanks to rising market prices since purchasing his home, he had accumulated a significant amount of home equity. His first step was to turn to his mortgage company, with the thought of obtaining a home equity loan or home equity line of credit. While he did not like the idea of taking on another monthly debt payment, he thought these could be good options to access his equity. 

Much to his chagrin, he could not qualify because his debt-to-income (DTI) ratio was too high. DTI is the percentage of monthly income that goes to debt payments, and Kevin was simply paying too much of his meager retirement income on his mounting debt.   

There had to be an answer… 

“I didn’t give up,” he says. “I thought there must be a way to take advantage of this home equity we had built up. There had to be an answer.” 

Doing some research online, he found Unlock. The company and process seemed very professional, he says, but he still thought, “This can’t be for real. What’s the catch?” 

It turned out there wasn’t a catch. “The home equity agreement was tailor-made for us,” he explains. He reviewed the Unlock website carefully, thoroughly read reviews from other customers and checked the Better Business Bureau rating. He even printed out the complete Unlock product guide and went through it with a fine-toothed comb. He was very happy with the home equity officer with whom he worked. “He was always there for me to call upon. I never felt I was left in the dark.” 

Breathing room 

Today, Kevin has much less debt – and much less stress. While he is still working on eliminating some credit card debt, the proceeds from his home equity agreement allowed him to pay off his personal loan, and in the process, free up $700 a month. He has been able to reduce his hours at his part-time job and is looking forward to returning to retirement. 

“I’m so grateful to Unlock,” Kevin says. “I have breathing room now. Without this home equity agreement, I’d still be gasping for breath.”