The housing market has been quite a roller coaster over the past 3 years or so. At the start of the pandemic, we essentially saw the entire economy shut down and housing was certainly in a holding pattern. Then, bolstered by historically low mortgage interest rates, we saw demand as well as prices for homes skyrocket from the second half of the 2020 through 2021. This was welcomed news for homeowners as they saw a swift rise in their home equity. With inflation at 40-year highs, we saw a swift reaction by The Federal Reserve with rapidly rising interest rates. This essentially brought the housing market to a significant slowdown with buyer demand plummeting. This led to a significant slower housing market throughout 2022 and into 2023. With fewer home buyers in the market due to higher home prices and interest rates, we have seen many homes for sale remaining on the market for longer periods of time. Ultimately, this has led to some price reductions across many markets. As expected, this has also led to reductions in home equity for many homeowners across the country. Of course, not all markets are created equal.
Florida is different
The total value of U.S. homes was $45.3 trillion at the end of 2022, down 4.9% ($2.3 trillion) from a record high of $47.7 trillion in June of 2022. On average, Americans have lost an average 4.9% of their home equity since June of 2022. This equates to a total decrease of $2.3 trillion and represents the largest June-to-December drop in percentage terms since 2008.
With this said, Florida has seen a different story unfold when it comes to home equity. In fact, 3 of the top 5 metro markets for home equity increases over the past year are in Florida. Below are the top 5 markets for home equity growth:
- 1. Miami, FL: Up 19.7%
- 2. North Port-Sarasota, FL: Up 17.8%
- 3. Knoxville, TN: Up 17.7%
- 4. Charleston, SC: Up 17.4%
- 5. Lakeland, FL: Up 16.9%
Summary
Not surprisingly, The Sunshine State has led the way with home equity preservation and increases over the past year. In fact, 6 of the top 10 cities for home equity over the past year are located in Florida. Bolstered by the increasing number of Americans relocating to Florida from more expensive states such as New York, New Jersey, & California, we continue to see increased demand for Florida real estate. As for the 5 markets in the country that have seen the biggest decreases in home equity, they are as follows:
- 1. San Francisco, CA: Down 6.7%
- 2. Oakland, CA.: Down 4.5%
- 3. San Jose, CA.: Down 3.2%
- 4. New York, NY: Down 1%
- 5. Seattle, WA: Down 0.4%
Are you thinking about moving to Florida? We can help! Contact Natasha at Live South Florida Realty, Inc. today! Also, don’t forget to download the free Florida Home Search app for your smartphone or tablet & have the power of the South Florida MLS at your fingertips.
