Did you know? Since the third quarter of 2019, U.S. homeowners with a mortgage have seen their home equity increase by $17,000 on average. This is equivalent to 10.8% year over year, according to a new report by CoreLogic. Homes with a mortgage comprise approximately 63% of all properties.
Negative equity decreasing
Negative equity is when a homeowner owes more on their house than their house is worth. Fortunately, the number of Americans in this position has decreased by 18.3% year over year from roughly 2 million homes to about 1.6 million homes. In the third quarter of 2020, the total number of mortgaged residential properties with negative equity decreased by 6.9% from the second quarter of 2020 to 1.6 million homes, or 3% of all mortgaged properties. On a year-over-year basis, negative equity fell by 18.3% from 2 million homes, or 3.7% of all mortgaged properties, in the third quarter of 2019.
Summary
Not surprisingly, the housing market is hotter in areas that have not been hit as hard with coronavirus infections. According to some recent data by Redfin last week, pending home sales increased 54.1% year over year in counties with low coronavirus infection rates. This is notably more than the 45.1% growth in counties with high coronavirus infection rates.
The average homeowner has a net worth that is about 41 times greater than that of a renter, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Homeowners’ net worth averaged between $150,000 and $200,000 this year, according to the NAR. If you are considering purchasing a home in South Florida, let our knowledge and experience at Live South Florida Realty, Inc. work for you!
