A growing percentage of homeowners owe less than half of their homes total value, according to recent analysis.
"The hot housing market has not just meant windfalls for sellers. It's also increasing the percentage of homeowners who are 'equity-rich,'" reports Andy Medici, sharing findings of a new study by property database Attom Data Solutions LLC.
"About 34.4% of residential properties in the United States were 'equity-rich' in the second quarter of 2021, which means the total loans on the property were half or less than half of the property's total value. That's up from 31.2% in the first quarter of 2021 and up from 27.5% in the second quarter of 2020," explains Medici of the report's findings.
Just 4.1 percemt of homes are underwater, "down from 5.2% during the first quarter of 2021 and down from 6.2% during the same time in 2020."
Around the country, Arizona saw the biggest jump in its portion of equity-rich homes. Maryland was the only state in the country that saw its percentage of equity-rich homes slip in the last quarter.
Read the full story: Covid-19-fueled market leads to more equity-rich homeowners
Home Equity Takings Case Will Move Forward, Federal Judge Rules
Two plaintiffs in Greenfield, Massachusetts, have accused city officials of violating the Takings Clause after the city foreclosed on their properties to recoup unpaid property taxes and then kept all the equity.
Institutional Investors Gaining a Larger Footprint in the Housing Market, Report Says
The locations with the fastest growing populations are seeing the most dramatic increase in investor-owned single-family housing rentals.
Survey Says: U.S. Homebuyers, Especially Gen Z, Want Walkable Neighborhoods
Generation Z is leading a new push toward walkable communities, according to a recent survey by the National Association of Realtors.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
Nation's most wind-powered state turns to coal as data centers increase energy demand
For the first time in decades, Iowa has increased its generation of coal power.
NYC cools commuters with city's first rain garden above a bus stop
New York City officials say the plants in the rain garden can absorb 16 gallons of rainwater during heavy storms.
Brightline West’s future may rely on $6 billion federal loan
The company has until Nov. 2 to make a $400 million equity investment into its proposed high-speed rail line.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
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Journal of the American Planning Association