In case you were unaware it is a good time to be a homeowner. According to a new report from ATTOM Data Solutions, over 40% of properties were equity-rich in Q4…(ATTOM)
- In the fourth quarter of 2021, 41.9% of mortgaged residential properties loan balances were no more than 50% of their estimated market values.
- This is up from the 39.5% reported in the third quarter and well up from the 30.2% reported in Q4 of 2020.
In even better news, just 3.1% of mortgaged homes were considered seriously underwater in the fourth quarter.
- This is down from the 3.4% reported in the third quarter and well down from the 5.4% reported in Q4 of 2020.
The West still has the largest share of equity-rich homeowners with four of the top five states…
- Idaho lead the way with 66.7% of mortgage homes equity-rich followed by Vermont (64.8%), Utah (62.5%), Washington (58.6%), and Arizona (57.6%).
- Illinois and Louisiana had the least amount of equity-rich homes at 22.5% followed by Alaska (23.9%), Wyoming (24.5%), and Mississippi (26.3%)
Twelve of the 15 states with the lowest percentages of equity-rich properties in the fourth quarter of 2021 were in the Midwest and South. However, southern states also saw some of the biggest improvements across the country…
- Tennessee saw the most improvement with a 5.8 percentage point jump in Q3 to 47.2% in the fourth quarter followed by North Carolina with a 5.8 percentage point increase (44.2%) and Nevada up 4.9% percentage points (49.8%)
Todd Teta, chief product officer with ATTOM, noted this great for homeowners but it is also is an indication that the boom could be coming to an end…
- “As home prices kept rising, so did the equity built up in residential properties, to the point where close to half of all mortgage payers around the country found themselves in equity-rich territory…No doubt, there are market metrics that pose warnings about how long the boom can last and equity can keep improving. We keep watching those closely. But for now, homeowners are sitting pretty as the wealth they have tucked away in their homes keeps growing.”