Pace slows, but homeowner equity still climbing in state
by February 21, 2023 4:22 pm 687 views
Arkansas homeowners continue to see their equity climb.
Nearly 38% of all homeowners in the state are equity-rich, according to real estate data provider Attom Data Solutions’ fourth-quarter 2022 U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report. That’s up slightly from 36.6% in the third quarter of 2022 and up from 28.9% a year ago.
The report also shows that just 5.2% of mortgaged homes in Arkansas, or one in 19, were considered seriously underwater in the fourth quarter of 2022. That’s down from 5.9% a year ago.
Nationally, 48% of homeowners with a mortgage were equity-rich in the fourth quarter of 2022 — owing the lender less than 50% of the price they could sell their home. That is a slight decline from the third quarter of 2022 when that same number stood at 48.5% and up from the same period in 2021 at 41.9%.
The portion of equity-rich mortgage payers declined in 31 states, and the fourth quarter’s decline reversed 10 straight quarters of gains.
“Dents are beginning to surface in the armor around the U.S. housing market after 11 years of a strong showing for owners,” Attom CEO Rob Barber said. “Home values have been dropping since the middle of last year, which appears to be starting to cut into homeowner equity around the country. That’s probably happening because values are sinking faster than owners are paying off their mortgages. How that shakes out over the next few months will depend on a lot of factors, including where interest rates go.”
The report also breaks down home equity among 107 metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) with a population greater than 500,000. Of the 97,249 mortgaged properties in Northwest Arkansas, 52,354 (53.8%) are considered equity-rich. That’s up slightly from 52.8% in the third quarter of 2022 and up from 39.3% a year ago.
In central Arkansas, where there are 133,753 mortgaged properties, 38,553 (28.8%) are considered equity-rich. That’s up from 27.4% in the third quarter of 2022 and up from 21.7% a year ago.
Click here for a link to the full report.