A study released today showed which cities have the highest share of homeowners without mortgage debt, ranking U.S. cities by the proportion of such homeowners who are ‘free and clear’.
To assess “free and clear” homeowners, analysts used LendingTree’s proprietary database of almost all homes in the United States to calculate the proportion of homes with zero mortgage debt in each city. They also calculated the median value of mortgaged and non-mortgaged properties and their ratio.
Key findings:
The top free and clear cities get there by different means:
“As home prices rise, these homeowners receive the full benefits and see their wealth accumulate,” said Tendayi Kapfidze, Chief Economist at LendingTree. “This wealth accumulation boosts consumer spending via the wealth effect, making for more dynamic economies.”
Kapfidze continued, “Homeowners who do not have mortgage debt can decide if and how they want to access this wealth, perhaps by taking out a loan to address life needs, and are generally better able to absorb financial shocks. The Federal Reserve’s measure of how much wealth households have in real estate equity has climbed from a $6-trillion level nine years ago to about $15 trillion in 2018.”
|
50 Largest Cities Ranked by Percent of Free & Clear Homes |
||||
|
Rank |
Metro |
Percent of Free & Clear Homes |
Median Value of Non- mortgaged (“Free & Clear”) Homes |
Median Value of Mortgaged Homes |
|
1 |
Detroit |
55% |
$103,000 |
$206,000 |
|
2 |
Miami |
52% |
$236,000 |
$303,000 |
|
3 |
Las Vegas |
48% |
$231,000 |
$252,000 |
|
4 |
Birmingham, Ala. |
46% |
$127,000 |
$188,000 |
|
5 |
Tampa, Fla. |
45% |
$166,000 |
$219,000 |
|
6 |
Oklahoma City |
45% |
$131,000 |
$162,000 |
|
7 |
San Diego |
44% |
$580,000 |
$561,000 |
|
8 |
San Francisco |
43% |
$935,000 |
$874,000 |
|
9 |
Orlando, Fla. |
42% |
$191,000 |
$238,000 |
|
10 |
Phoenix |
42% |
$232,000 |
$254,000 |
|
11 |
Pittsburgh |
42% |
$135,000 |
$170,000 |
|
12 |
Kansas City, Mo. |
42% |
$156,000 |
$200,000 |
|
13 |
Memphis, Tenn. |
42% |
$113,000 |
$170,000 |
|
14 |
Buffalo, N.Y. |
42% |
$128,000 |
$160,000 |
|
15 |
Los Angeles |
42% |
$660,000 |
$611,000 |
|
16 |
Cleveland |
41% |
$112,000 |
$154,000 |
|
17 |
San Jose, Calif. |
41% |
$1,134,000 |
$1,032,000 |
|
18 |
Sacramento, Calif. |
40% |
$388,000 |
$395,000 |
|
19 |
Riverside, Calif. |
39% |
$319,000 |
$353,000 |
|
20 |
Jacksonville, Fla. |
39% |
$156,000 |
$209,000 |
|
21 |
Atlanta |
39% |
$174,000 |
$219,000 |
|
22 |
New York |
38% |
$458,000 |
$465,000 |
|
23 |
Cincinnati |
38% |
$146,000 |
$178,000 |
|
24 |
Milwaukee |
37% |
$201,000 |
$212,000 |
|
25 |
Charlotte, N.C. |
36% |
$176,000 |
$223,000 |
|
26 |
Indianapolis |
36% |
$104,000 |
$155,000 |
|
27 |
Chicago |
35% |
$210,000 |
$244,000 |
|
28 |
Columbus, Ohio |
35% |
$151,000 |
$202,000 |
|
29 |
Minneapolis |
35% |
$254,000 |
$271,000 |
|
30 |
St. Louis |
35% |
$128,000 |
$181,000 |
|
31 |
Houston |
34% |
$177,000 |
$225,000 |
|
32 |
New Orleans |
34% |
$176,000 |
$215,000 |
|
33 |
Salt Lake City |
34% |
$316,000 |
$306,000 |
|
34 |
San Antonio |
34% |
$183,000 |
$210,000 |
|
35 |
Nashville, Tenn. |
33% |
$219,000 |
$259,000 |
|
36 |
Louisville, Ky. |
33% |
$142,000 |
$183,000 |
|
37 |
Dallas |
33% |
$192,000 |
$249,000 |
|
38 |
Austin, Texas |
31% |
$278,000 |
$297,000 |
|
39 |
Providence, R.I. |
29% |
$263,000 |
$274,000 |
|
40 |
Raleigh, N.C. |
29% |
$208,000 |
$241,500 |
|
41 |
Denver |
29% |
$385,000 |
$403,000 |
|
42 |
Portland, Ore. |
28% |
$387,000 |
$386,000 |
|
43 |
Philadelphia |
28% |
$186,000 |
$246,000 |
|
44 |
Baltimore |
27% |
$237,000 |
$296,000 |
|
45 |
Boston |
26% |
$473,000 |
$468,000 |
|
46 |
Richmond, Va. |
25% |
$223,000 |
$244,000 |
|
47 |
Hartford, Conn. |
24% |
$211,000 |
$234,000 |
|
48 |
Washington |
23% |
$392,000 |
$409,000 |
|
49 |
Virginia Beach, Va. |
22% |
$216,000 |
$234,000 |
|
50 |
Seattle |
22% |
$447,000 |
$480,000 |
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