Hello everybody! Welcome back to Suburban Snacks, where we not only inform you of current Real Estate topics but we also review a different food item every month! This month’s snack is… Alejandro’s tortilla chips! In this episode, we’ll be explaining how 40% of homeowners are equity-rich. Homeowners are continuing to see the values of their homes grow, leading to a rapid increase in the equity they own in their properties. For anyone who doesn’t know, what is equity? According to Google, home equity is the market value of a homeowner’s unencumbered interest in their real property, that is, the difference between the home’s fair market value and the outstanding balance of all liens on the property. So as an example, let’s say you own your home and it’s currently worth $300,000 in this hot market! And you only owe $200,000 on your mortgage. Well, then you would say that you have $100,000 in home equity. So the fact that 40% of homeowners are equity-rich is really cool! Overall, by metro area, the three highest shares of mortgaged properties that were equity-rich in the fourth quarter are Austin, Texas (70.6%); Boise, Idaho (67.3%), and San Jose, Calif. (66.1%). There are many ways you can go about using your home equity. You can use your financial gains to buy a bigger and better house once you sell your current home. You can use your equity for retirement by using a reverse mortgage. You can also borrow against your home equity allowing you to either pull out cash or obtain a loan. If you are someone who has home equity and would like to explore your options further then we at Suburban are happy to help. REVIEW THE SNACK… That’s going to do it for us here at Suburban Snacks. If you have any questions or would like to get into contact with us feel free to check out our new website at suburbanrealestategroup.com. Also, make sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube all at SuburbanRealEstateGroup. Thanks for watching, my name is Cheri Malozsak and we will see you in the next one!