1.   Both credit card companies and home equity lenders have reduced their required minimum monthly payments to discourage customers from paying off their loans, Sohn said.

2.   First Alliance, a nationwide home equity lender facing a host of consumer and regulatory lawsuits accusing it of deceptive sales practices, filed for bankruptcy protection on Thursday.

3.   High-debt homeowners, whose names home equity lenders regularly purchase from credit bureaus, are another coveted market.

4.   Home equity lenders focusing on so-called subprime borrowers, those with bad credit or little credit history, are probably most vulnerable, he said.

5.   It also owns Champion Mortgage, a home equity lender.

6.   Mortgage companies, home equity lenders or home contractors with house liens can take a homestead.

7.   Other home equity lenders have adjusted their prepayment assumptions as loans are paid off faster than anticipated because of refinancings.