The amazing shrinking home equity

Across the country, Americans are continuing to utilize their home equity to advance their lives and lifestyles. While the reverse mortgage is all the rage today, home equity is still a historically cheap option to increasing access to money. Thomas Brown highlights exactly what are Americans doing with all of this money?

Home equity loans are still cheap and easy to get. But if real estate values keep sliding, that could change, credit experts warn.

Some owners have simply tapped out all of their equity, and their houses have stopped rising in value. In the Volusia-Flagler area, home sale prices since Jan. 1 have been running 6 percent below levels of a year ago.

That means some heavily mortgaged owners owe more than they could get if they had to sell their house tomorrow.

Written by charles dennis on May 28th, 2007 with comments disabled.
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