The Black Knight Home Price Index hit an all-time high in June on both seasonally adjusted and unadjusted levels, with nearly every major market experiencing month-over-month growth and 60% of these markets recording annual growth.
According to new data from Black Knight Inc. (NYSE:BKI), prices soared to new peaks in 30 of the 50 largest markets in June, with a 0.8% annual growth rate after slowing for 14 consecutive months. On a month-over-month measurement, home prices registered a 0.67% uptick.
“We’ve been noting for some months that the recent rate of home price gains would have a lagging, but significant, impact on the annual rate of appreciation,” said Black Knight Vice President of Enterprise Research Andy Walden. “Rising home prices have boosted homeowner equity levels as well, which had been retreating from their 2022 highs not very long ago. In fact, despite total outstanding mortgage debt topping $13 trilion for the first time in history, much of the decline in equity we’d tracked since last year’s peak has since been recovered.”
“Overall mortgage-holder equity is now back above $16 trillion, with some $10.5 trillion of that being ‘tappable,’ or available for the homeowner to borrow against while still maintaining a relatively conservative 20% equity stake,” Walden added. “The average mortgage holder has some $199,000 in tappable equity available to them; down somewhat from 2022’s historic highs but still a historically large amount regardless. In terms of negative equity, or ‘underwater borrowers,’ it’s a nearly nonexistent phenomenon in today’s market – just 344,000 homeowners currently owe more on their homes than the properties are worth.”
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