Tappable Equity Hits New High

A new data report from Black Knight Inc. has found total tappable equity—the amount of equity available to homeowners with mortgages to borrow against before hitting a maximum 80 percent combined loan-to-value ratio—reached $636 billion in the second quarter, a new record high.

 

“As the second quarter came to a close, the total amount of tappable equity available to homeowners with mortgages surpassed the $6 trillion mark for the first time in history,” said Ben Graboske, Executive Vice President of Black Knight’s Data & Analytics Division. “There is now $636 billion more tappable equity available than at the start of 2018, and nearly three times as much compared to the bottom of the market in 2012. Despite the noticeable slowing in home price appreciation over the past four months that Black Knight has reported on recently, some 44 million homeowners now have equity that could be tapped via cash-out refinances or home equity lines of credit.”

 

However, Graboske added that while total available equity set a new record, Black Knight also noted a slowing in quarterly equity growth, with second quarter’s $256 billion increase in tappable equity being lower than first quarter’s $381 billion increase.

 

“Drilling down to a more localized geographic level, we see significant pullback in the rate of home price appreciation in the nation's 10 most equity-rich markets,” he continued. “This, in turn, pushed down overall equity growth nationwide.”

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