home equity

California homeowners have plenty of equity – as long as they leave

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Green Esrcow | Affordable Housing

According to recent analysis, the Average California homeowner with a mortgage currently has $626,900 in home equity. The national average is $310,500, meaning a Californian could purchase a median-priced home outright in 48 states.

So. while household net worth increases, it is also what keeps the housing market slow as many homeowners are reluctant to give up their homes and favorable mortgage rates – hence the term golden handcuffs. Currently, home prices in California are 46% higher than they were in 2020.

Of course, this means that to take advantage of this home equity, it’s necessary to leave California – which is what many are doing. California lost 230,000 to other states in 2025 and 240,000 in 2024. And, while income in other states is about 8% less, the 48% difference in median-home prices certainly makes it worthwhile for some.

Home equity is up … and so is mortgage debt

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Green Escrow Services | American economy

Amidst all the housing industry turmoil, home equity rose at the close of 2024 to it’s third-highest value ever at $34.7 trillion.

Home equity grew the most in New England, New Jersey, Michigan, Nevada, and California. Equity declined the most in Hawaii, Florida, and Washington D.C.

On the flip side, mortgage debt rose to a new record high of $13.3 trillion.

Got equity?

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Green Escrow Services | American economy

Chances are, if you own a home in the United States, you do have equity – and plenty of it! According to statistics, equity, or the total value of owner-occupied real estate, reached 72.7% in the second quarter of 2024, the highest level since 1958.

The total value of all this equity is $48.2 trillion, an increase of 8 % from just a year ago and nearly double of the total value of homes 10 years ago.

It’s worth noting that the total debt in the U.S. also hit a new high of $13.1 trillion but it grew at a slower rate – up only3% from last year.

Finally, according to the U.S. Census Bureau nearly 40% of all owner-occupied homes are now mortgage-free, the highest rate since 2005.

California homeowners gain an average of $119,000 of equity in one year

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Green Escrow | Real Estate News

According to a new report by CoreLogic, California homeowners increased their equity by an average of $119,000 in one year. Nationwide, this comes to an increase of 31 percent.

This is especially good news for the 1.2 million homeowners who reached the end of forbearance in September, as this increase in equity is a buffer against foreclosure.

Meanwhile, most analysts see this trend continuing, although at a lower rate. Fannie Mae estimates that home prices will increase by 7.4 percent in 2022, followed by a 2.9 precent rise in 2023.

U.S. Homeowners Equity Continues to Increase

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Green Escrow Services | Adding value to home

One of the positives of the continued home price appreciation is the amount of equity that homeowners can borrow against has increased significantly, especially in California. Currently 40 million homeowners in the U.S. have at least 20 percent equity in their homes.

40 percent of the nation’s tappable home equity is in California.

three of the top five of metro areas in the U.S. with the most home equity are in California including San Francisco, San Jose, and Los Angeles.

More Homes Have Positive Equity

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Green Escrow Services | Adding value to home

A recent report by CoreLogic states that nation-wide 47.9 million home – or 93.7 percent of those having a mortgage – now have positive equity.

Moreover, 95.2 of California homeowners have positive equity and San Francisco leads the nation with 99.4 percent as of the third quarter, 2016.

Of course, equity gains are due in large part to continually rising home prices – certainly a constant in the Bay Area – but also to favorable mortgage rates.

The report notes that mortgage rates remain relatively low but have risen for six consecutive weeks since the presidential election as are expected to continue to raise, particularly if the Federal Reserve raises interest rates next week.

Homeowners’ Equity Holdings Continues to Increase

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Real Estate Growth

The value of American homeowners’ equity holdings – market value of homes minus the home loans – increased by nearly $2.1 trillion in 2013 to nearly $10 trillion. In addition nearly 4 million homeowners were able to rise above the negative equity of their homes thanks largely to increasing prices. According to the latest research, nearly 43 million owners with mortgage debt have positive equity. however, approximatelyly 6.5 million owners are still in negative equity positions, which, however, is down dramatically from more than 10 million a year ago and 12 million in 2009.