{"id":7018,"date":"2014-10-10T14:17:42","date_gmt":"2014-10-10T14:17:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.anthonydidonato.net\/wordpress\/?p=7018"},"modified":"2014-10-10T14:17:42","modified_gmt":"2014-10-10T14:17:42","slug":"home-owners-tapping-equity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.anthonydidonato.net\/wordpress\/home-owners-tapping-equity\/","title":{"rendered":"Home Owners are Tapping Into Equity, Again."},"content":{"rendered":"

Home Owners are Tapping Into Equity, Again<\/h2>\n
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Home Owners are Tapping Into Equity, Again. Image courtesy of Stuart Miles \/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net<\/p><\/div>\n

Home equity lines of credit surged nearly 20 percent compared to a year ago and are now at the highest level since the 12 months ending in June 2009, according to RealtyTrac\u2019s Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) Trends Report. HELOC origination’s comprised 15.4 percent of all loan origination’s nationwide during the first eight months of the year, the highest percentage since 2008.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis recent rise in HELOC originations indicates that an increasing number of home owners are gaining confidence in the strength of the housing recovery and, more importantly, have regained much of their home equity lost during the housing crisis,\u201d says Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac.<\/p>\n

Nearly 10 million home owners nationwide, representing 19 percent of all home owners with a mortgage, have regained at least 50 percent equity in their homes, RealtyTrac data shows. Meanwhile the percentage of home owners with severe negative equity has fallen from 29 percent in the second quarter of 2012 to 17 percent in the second quarter of this year, Blomquist notes.<\/p>\n

Despite home equity lines of credit rising significantly in the past year, they still remain 76 percent below the 2006 peak reached during the housing boom, RealtyTrac notes.<\/p>\n

Among the nation\u2019s largest metro areas tracked, 49 out of 50 posted year-over-year increases in HELOC originations for the year ending June 2014 (the lone exception was Rochester, N.Y.).<\/p>\n

The following metro areas had the largest year-over-year increases in HELOC originations:<\/p>\n