Our nation’s capital is also the nation’s mortgage capital.
A LawnStarter analysis of newly released data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows the Washington, DC, metro area had the highest share of homes with mortgages (78.1 percent) among the 100 largest metro areas in 2015. In the DC area, owners of more than 1 million homes had mortgages last year.
Mortgage Debt in DC
Steven Centrella, a Redfin real estate agent who works in the DC market, attributes the high percentage of mortgaged homes, in part, to the region’s transient population — including a sizable number of millennial transplants.
“DC is not a large market for retirees or downsizers who may be more likely to own their homes outright,” Centrella says. “And while there are lifetime Washingtonians, of course, a large percentage of the home-buying population has moved here from somewhere else for job and educational opportunities. Many of these residents will not live in DC forever and will purchase a home without the intention of owning it for 30 or more years.”
A local real estate agent says the Washington, DC, home market is healthy.
Photo: Pixabay
Additionally, he says, high home prices and high living expenses in the DC area preclude some people from buying a home unless they take out a mortgage.
Despite those financial constraints, Centrella says the DC area weathered the recent housing collapse pretty well, and boasts a healthy economy and robust housing market.
“The fact that people continue to move here and our market is growing is good news for the region’s housing market,” he says.
Most Mortgaged Metros
Based on our review of data from the Census Bureau’s 2015 American Community Survey, here are the 14 Most Mortgaged Metros in America.
1. Washington, DC
Photo: Pixabay
Number of owner-occupied homes: 1,352,332
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 1,069,934
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 79.118%
2. Denver, CO
Photo: Allstate Blog
Number of owner-occupied homes: 677,167
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 515,339
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 76.102%
3. Raleigh, NC
Photo: Great American Country
Number of owner-occupied homes: 303,885
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 229,349
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 75.472%
4. Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA
Photo: Conejo Valley Guy
Number of owner-occupied homes: 170,602
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 127,747
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 74.880%
5. Colorado Springs, CO
Photo: Circa Real Estate Group
Number of owner-occupied homes: 161,617
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 120,943
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 74.833%
6. Provo-Orem, UT
Photo: Provo Insider
Number of owner-occupied homes: 106,725
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 78,739
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 73.777%
7. Atlanta, GA
Photo: Buckhead.com
Number of owner-occupied homes: 1,248,726
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 919,180
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 73.609%
8. Seattle, WA
Photo: Movoto
Number of owner-occupied homes: 861,541
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 632,110
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 73.370%
9. Indianapolis, IN
Photo: Downtown Indy
Number of owner-occupied homes: 484,654
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 352,902
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 72.815%
10. Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA
Photo: Stateline Realty
Number of owner-occupied homes: 388,768
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 283,044
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 72.805%
11. San Francisco, CA
Photo: San Francisco Travel
Number of owner-occupied homes: 903,500
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 656,117
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 72.619%
12. Portland, OR
Photo: Portland Property Management
Number of owner-occupied homes: 550,790
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 399,066
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 72.453%
13. Sacramento, CA
Photo: City of Sacramento
Number of owner-occupied homes: 474,156
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 343,477
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 72.440%
14. Salt Lake City, UT
Photo: Move.org
Number of owner-occupied homes: 249,644
Number of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 180,785
Percentage of owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 72.417%
Photo: Pixabay