The share of mortgaged homes considered “equity rich” fell in the second quarter of 2026, marking the fourth consecutive quarterly decline and bringing the national share to its lowest level in five years.
The Attom report found that 41.1% of U.S. mortgaged properties were equity rich, down from 43.3% in the first quarter. It was the lowest share since the fourth quarter of 2021.
A home is considered equity rich when the combined balance of loans secured by the property is no more than half its estimated market value.
The report also found that 3.2% of properties were considered “seriously underwater,” meaning combined loan balances were at least 25% higher than the property value. The rate was unchanged from the first quarter but up from 2.7% a year earlier.
“These two measures of home equity strength, the rates of equity-rich and seriously underwater homes, remain healthier than they were prior to 2020,” said Rob Barber, CEO of Attom. He noted that “both have been moving in less favorable directions over the past year, suggesting a trend worth watching.”
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Minnesota saw the largest jump in the number of seriously underwater homes, with an annual increase from 2.6% to 12.1%. It was also the state with the largest overall seriously underwater rate. South Dakota, Iowa, Michigan and the District of Columbia also saw significant increases.
The most significant drops in the volume of seriously underwater homes were seen in Louisiana, Kentucky, North Dakota, Oklahoma and New York.
The data also looked at the equity ratios in metropolitan statistical areas with populations of at least 500,000. Attom reported 96.3% of the metro areas had a lower share of equity-rich homes than a year earlier. The quarterly decrease was 67.6%.
The metro areas with the most equity-rich homes in the second quarter were San Jose, Calif. (59.1%); Portland, Maine (56.4%); New York City (54.7%); Buffalo, N.Y. (54.4%); and Providence, R.I. (53.1%).
The lowest rates of equity-rich homes for the quarter were in the metro areas of Baton Rouge, La. (15.4%); Minneapolis (16.9%); Fresno, Calif. (18.1%); New Orleans (19.9%); and Richmond, Va. (22.1%).
