The gap between equity-rich homeowners and mortgage borrowers who are seriously underwater narrowed in the second quarter, highlighting the uneven nature of the housing market's recovery since the Great Recession.
Despite available home equity shooting up in the first quarter, the share of total equity withdrawn by borrowers hit a four-year low, likely due to an increase in interest rates, according to Black Knight.
From medical expenses to home improvements, here's a look at some of the most frequently cited reasons homeowners are borrowing against their home equity.
Though mortgage originations were down overall in the first quarter, home equity lines of credit spiked on higher home prices, according to Attom Data Solutions.
As house values continued growing, homeowners with mortgages saw their equity increase 13.3% year-over-year in the first quarter, a gain of over $1.01 trillion, according to CoreLogic.
HELOCs make up just 2.9% of the $281 million pool of collateral; 81.8% of the HELOC borrowers are currently ineligible to make draws; another 18.2% are permanently frozen.
Mortgage borrowers collectively hold more equity in their homes than at any other time on record, but they've been slow to borrow against this newfound wealth, according to Black Knight.
