The average homeowner is sitting on hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of home equity right now. Penpak Ngamsathain/Getty Images

Borrowing a large, five-figure amount of your home equity may not be the first thing you think of when in need of extra financing. But in today's continuously cooling interest rate climate, it may be worth considering. With options like home equity loans and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) , homeowners can gain access to a sizable portion of their equity either via a lump sum or as a revolving line of credit. And they can do so at a time when interest rates on both products are seemingly on a never-ending decline.

Home equity loan interest rates are now under 8% , on average, and HELOC rates are down by more than two full percentage

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