What is Home Equity?

Published On: January 31, 2018|Categories: Blog|Tags: |

how you could lose your earnest money depositIf you’re buying a home in Tampa Bay, you’ve probably heard of home equity – but what is it, and how do you build it?

What is Home Equity?

Home equity is the money your house is worth on today’s market, minus the amount of money you still owe the bank for it.

If you could sell your home for $250,000 today, but you only owe the bank $200,000 for your mortgage loan, you have $50,000 in home equity.

Building equity is good – you can borrow against your equity if you need cash, and the more equity you have, the greater your profit will be when you sell.

How Do You Build Home Equity?

When your home appreciates (grows in value), and when your mortgage balance goes down, you’re building equity. There are a few things you can do to help build equity faster, too:

  • Make home improvements that increase your home’s value
  • Make additional payments toward the home’s principal
  • Refinance into a shorter-term loan so you can pay off the balance faster

Are You Looking for Homes for Sale in Tampa or Its Suburbs?

If you’re thinking about moving to Tampa, check out the links below to search for homes with just one click:

When you’re ready to start looking at homes for sale in Hillsborough CountyPasco County or Pinellas County, we’re here to help.

Call us at 727-584-8480 or 813-961-6000. If it’s easier, get in touch with us online. We’ll begin searching for your new home right away.