Washington — Abortion rights advocates in Arizona on Wednesday submitted more than double the signatures needed to place an initiative on the November ballot that would enshrine the right to abortion in the state’s constitution.

Organizers with Arizona for Abortion Access, the coalition behind the effort, said they submitted 823,685 signatures, far more than the 383,923 required to place an initiative proposing a constitutional amendment before voters.

The Arizona Constitution requires valid signatures from 15% of registered voters for ballot questions. The secretary of state and county officials will next process the petitions and determine whether enough valid signatures were gathered to put the proposal on the ballot.

Called the Arizona Abortion Access Act, the initiative would amend the state constitution to establish the right to abortion. Under the plan, the state would not be allowed to restrict access to abortion before viability, generally around 22 to 24 weeks in a pregnancy. An abortion may be performed after viability if necessary to save the life of the mother, or her physical or mental health. The proposal prohibits the state from penalizing others for assisting a pregnant woman in exercising her right to abortion.

If the measure is cleared for the November ballot, Arizona would join at least five other states where voters will decide whether to amend their respective state constitutions to recognize the right to abortion. Those states are Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Nevada and South Dakota.

Efforts are underway in several other states, including Arkansas, Missouri, Montana and Nebraska, to get the issue on the Nov. 5 ballot.

Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022 and cleared the way for states to enact laws restricting access to abortion, the issue has become a motivator for voters, and Democrats are hoping that remains the case for this year’s general election. 

In the wake of the high court’s decision, the abortion rights position has succeeded in seven states where the issue was squarely before voters. In Kansas, Kentucky and Montana, anti-abortion rights proposals failed. Meanwhile, in California, Michigan, Ohio and Vermont, measures to enshrine access in state constitutions were successful.

Abortion is banned in Arizona after 15 weeks of pregnancy. But the state recently became the center of a fierce ballot over access after its supreme court ruled that an 1864 law outlawing the procedure, except when necessary to save the mother’s life, could be enforced.

The decision set off a frenzy of legislative activity in the state, as lawmakers moved swiftly to repeal the Civil War-era law, which remained on the books but hadn’t been enforced since the 1973 Roe decision legalizing abortion nationwide. Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, signed a bill in May unwinding the pre-Roe ban, though it won’t take effect until 90 days after the end of the state legislative session, which adjourned last month.

Do you have a costly home repair or remodel planned? Are you thinking about opening a business? In either case – or for a multitude of other reasons – you may need access to $70,000. There are multiple options to consider when borrowing that amount of money. Credit cards and personal loans are two alternatives to think about. But, a home equity loan could be a better option. 

These loans often come with lower interest rates because they’re attached to your home. But, with your home as security, you should ensure you can afford the payments before borrowing the money.

So, how much would a $70,000 home equity loan cost per month and how would that cost compare to the monthly cost of credit cards and personal loans? That’s what we’ll calculate below.

See what home equity loan interest rate you’re eligible for here. 

How much would a $70,000 home equity loan cost per month?

There are a few factors that will dictate the monthly cost of your home equity loan. These include your interest rate and loan amount. Your term can also have a meaningful impact on your payments. 

10-year and 15-year terms are some popular options to consider. And, the average interest rates for home equity loans with these are 8.74% and 8.73%, respectively. At 8.74%, your monthly payments on a 10-year $70,000 home equity loan would be $876.91. And, at 8.73%, you would pay $698.79 on a $70,000 15-year home equity loan. 

But, the monthly cost of your loan isn’t the only thing you should consider. There’s a significant difference between the overall cost of a 10-year $70,000 home equity loan and its 15-year alternative. Over 10 years, you would pay a total of $105,229.28, which includes $35,229.28 in interest. Over 15 years, you would pay a total of $125,781.76, which includes $55,781.76 in interest. 

So, while you can save on the monthly cost of your loan by opting for a 15-year term over a 10-year term, you could experience significant long-term savings by choosing the 10-year option. 

Find out how much your home equity loan payments would be today. 

How home equity loan costs compare to the alternatives

The difference in the monthly cost between home equity loans and personal loans or credit cards can be substantial. According to Bankrate, the average credit card interest rate is almost 21%, as of June 26, 2024. And, the average personal loan interest rate is 12.35%.

If you took out a $70,000 10-year personal loan at 12.35%, your monthly payments would be $1,018.51. If you opted for a 15-year term at the same rate, your monthly payments would be $855.94. If you opted for a 10-year term, you would pay $52,221.26 in interest while you would pay $84,069.90 in interest if you chose a 15-year term. 

And, your credit card payments on $70,000 at 21% interest would be $1,399 per month over 10 years. Of course, those payments would decline as your balance declined.

Based on these figures, you could realize substantial savings over personal loans and credit cards by borrowing $70,000 with a home equity loan instead. 

Tap into savings with a home equity loan now. 

The bottom line

You would pay between $698.79 and $876.91 per month on the average $70,000 home equity loan, depending on your loan’s term and interest rate. That pales in comparison to the payments ranging from $855.94 to $1,399 per month that you’d need to make if you borrowed the same amount of money with a personal loan or credit card. Compare today’s leading home equity loans to access the money you need now.