Homeowner Equity Continues to Rise

Sep 21, 2017

Home Diversification Corp., a startup fintech based in Manchester, N.H., has launched a consumer division called “Diversify My Home,”

Homeowners with mortgages saw their equity increase by 10.6 percent year-over-year during the second quarter, representing a gain of $766 billion, according to new data from CoreLogic.

Roughly 63 percent of all homeowners have mortgages, and this sector within the housing market gained an average of $12,987 in equity between from the second quarter of 2016 to this year’s second quarter. The greatest gains were in the Western states, with Washington homeowners gaining an average of approximately $40,000 in home equity and California homeowners gaining an average of approximately $30,000.

While this occurred, the total number of mortgaged residential properties with negative equity decreased to 2.8 million homes in the second quarter from 3.6 million homes one year earlier, a 21.9 percent plummet. From the first quarter to the second quarter, the total number fell by 10 percent. The national aggregate value of negative equity was approximately $284.4 billion at the end of second quarter, down 0.2 percent year-over-year but up a scant 0.1 percent from the first quarter.

“Over the last 12 months, approximately 750,000 borrowers achieved positive equity,” said Frank Nothaft, chief economist for CoreLogic. “This means that mortgage risk continues to decline and, given the continued strength in home prices, CoreLogic expects home equity to rise steadily over the next year.”

Homeowners with mortgages saw their equity increase by 10.6 percent year-over-year during the second quarter, representing a gain of $766 billion

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Phil Hall

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Sep 21, 2017

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