Living in an underwater house

TEXT OF STORY

Bill Radke: A study out this morning shows that 1 in 5 U.S. homeowners owe more to their mortgage lenders than their homes are worth, and that that number will rise as the housing slump spreads. Here’s Marketplace’s Jennifer Collins.

Jennifer Collins: It’s no secret that price declines have ravaged the housing market. But a study by First American CoreLogic shows that more and more home owners have negative equity.

Real estate agents often call that “being underwater.” The study shows more than 8 million properties were underwater at the end of last year. That’s up 9 percent from the quarter before.

Experts say 62 percent of underwater borrowers come from six states: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Ohio. Those borrowers account for 41 percent of mortgages there. New York is in the best shape when it comes to homes with negative equity. Around the country, 20 percent of borrowers are underwater.

I’m Jennifer Collins for Marketplace.