Both a reverse mortgage and a home equity loan allow you to borrow against the value of your home. With a reverse mortgage, however, you don’t have to make payments until you move or sell your home.
With a home equity loan, however, you must make monthly payments until the entire loan balance is paid off.
The main difference between these two types of loans is that with a reverse mortgage, you do not have to pay back the money until after you move out of your house or sell it. With home equity loans on the other hand there are usually monthly payments due until the entire loan balance is paid off in full.
Additionally, with HELOCs, there can be additional fees associated with using them such as application fees and closing costs which are not typically associated with either type of loan mentioned above.