The folks in the northern states (and even down into Kentucky) who have sugar maple trees on their properties have the old-fashioned option of supplementing their incomes by tapping into the sap. Boiling it down takes a lot of energy, but the maple syrup is highly saleable. Many Houston homeowners don’t need to turn to agribusiness to have an alternate option for raising cash in a pinch: tapping into their Houston home’s equity. According to last Thursday’s USA Today, its financial importance also dwarfs the maple syrup idea—currently, by trillions of dollars.
The total equity now held by American homeowners is awesome. “Homeowners are sitting on an estimated $20 trillion worth of home equity,” according to the credit authorities at TransUnion. In the first two quarters of 2022, homeowners tapped into the availability of ready cash to the tune of nearly $131,000,000,000 (yes, that’s billions). Such was the total credit value of the 807,000 new Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs) granted by lenders during just those two quarters—a 30% increase over the same period in 2021.
The dramatic expansion of Houston homes’ equity was fueled by the “red-hot market” that swept the nation in what is now thought of as “the pandemic market.” And homeowners aren’t alone in welcoming the HELOC phenomenon. Mortgage lenders, faced with interest rate increases that have stifled demand for original home loans, are grateful to have HELOC demand to fall back on. USA Today may have had those firms in mind with its headline depiction of equity loans as the “Right Tool at the Right Time.”
When home sales prices confirm hefty valuations, they also underscore another benefit that Houston property owners are happy to confirm: the equity dimension that owning your home provides. Call me for the latest sales results for Houston and surrounding areas. We would be happy to focus on properties that match the criteria that interest you. Please call Rinnovare Realty, LLC at (832) 445-4957 or visit us at www.rinnovarerealty.com .