Source: CNBC —
For many homeowners, the pandemic offered an unprecedented opportunity to build wealth. Those opportunities still exist, even though they are getting harder to come by.
Thanks to skyrocketing housing prices, the amount of home equity is at an all-time high.
As of the third quarter of last year, homeowners held $9.4 trillion in equity to tap, the largest amount ever recorded, according to the most recent data from Black Knight, a mortgage technology and research firm.
For the average homeowner, that’s nearly $178,000 in equity available to tap before hitting a maximum combined loan-to-value ratio of 80%, according to Black Knight Data & Analytics President Ben Graboske. Most lenders require that you keep at least 20% equity in your home, if not more, as a cushion in case home prices fall.
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