Should I take out a home equity loan to pay off my credit card balances?

Yes if the amount of credit card debt is significant and you do not have sufficient investments you can sell to raise the needed cash. Home equity loans often have much lower interest rates, and home equity loans up to $100,000 are fully deductible as interest expense. On the other hand, interest expense on credit card debt is not deductible, unless it can be tied to a business expense.