The U.S. housing market lost $3.3 trillion in value last year and almost one in six owners with mortgages owed more than their homes were worth as the economy went into recession, Zillow.com said.
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About $6.1 trillion of value has been lost since the housing market peaked in the second quarter of 2006 and last year’s decline was almost triple the $1.3 trillion lost in 2007, Zillow said.
Values have dropped for eight straight quarters. They fell in Manhattan for the first time since Zillow began including the New York City borough in its records two years ago.
A few points.
1.) I've noticed there has been a diminished use of household net worth as an econometric measure. Now you know why. Households are getting clobbered from the real estate and equity side of the equation.
2.) The possibility of an increase in personal consumption expenditures in the current environment is wishful thinking, nothing more. People are going to pay down debt and save for the foreseeable future.
3.) 16% of all US homeowners are underwater. That's huge.
