Homeowners with mortgages, or 63% of the total, have collectively seen their equity increase 11.8% from the third quarter of 2016 to 3Q17, representing a gain of $871 billion year-over-year, according to CoreLogic.
Homeowners saw average gains of $14,888 in home equity between the third quarters of 2016 and 2017, and negative equity declined 22% from 2.3 million homes, or 6.3% of all mortgaged properties.
"Homeowner equity increased by almost $871 billion over the last 12 months, the largest increase in more than three years," said Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic, in a press release. "This increase is primarily a reflection of rising home prices, which drives up home values, leading to an increase in home equity positions and supporting consumer spending."
States in the West led in increased homeowner equity, though no states experienced a decline. Washington homeowners gained about $40,000 in home equity and homeowners in California gained about $37,000.
"While homeowner equity is rising nationally, there are wide disparities by geography," said Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic, in a press release.
"Hot markets like San Francisco, Seattle and Denver boast very high levels of increased home equity. However, some markets are lagging behind due to weaker economies or lingering effects from the great recession. These include large markets such as Miami, Las Vegas and Chicago, but also many small- and medium-sized markets such as Scranton, Pa., and Akron, Ohio."
