--- description: A new reports estimates some 18% of mortgaged homeowners are stuck with homes worth less than their debt, and that's an improvement over previous quarters title: Nearly 10 Million Mortgaged Homes are Still Underwater image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd147aac99d0e7489/6986903135ba6f1903c0212b/170291972.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [real estate](/tag/real-estate/) ## real estate Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Nearly 10 Million Mortgaged Homes are Still Underwater  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 20, 2014 2:24 PM CUT  A "for sale by owner" sign stands outside a home in LaSalle, Illinois, U.S., on Friday, June 7, 2013\. The Mortgage Bankers Associations weekly mortgage market index, which measures mortgage loan applications for purchases and refinancings, is scheduled to be released on June 12\. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images A "for sale by owner" sign stands outside a home in LaSalle, Illinois, U.S., on Friday, June 7, 2013\. The Mortgage Bankers Associations weekly mortgage market index, which measures mortgage loan applications for purchases and refinancings, is scheduled to be released on June 12\. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesDaniel Acker—Bloomberg /Getty Images  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 20, 2014 2:24 PM CUT A collapse in housing prices has trapped nearly 10 million U.S. homeowners in homes worth less than their mortgages, according to a new report by real-estate price tracking website, [Zillow](http://zillow.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=159&item=437 "undefined"). The report [estimates](http://zillow.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=159&item=437 "undefined") that in the first quarter of 2014, 18.8% of mortgaged homeowners were stuck in homes that would sell at a loss. That marks an improvement over the final quarter of last year when 19.4% of home mortgages were underwater and a significant improvement over the 2012 high of 31.4% — but still leaves nearly 10 million households struggling in negative equity. The report estimates that another 10 million homeowners have 20% or less equity on their homes, known as “effective negative equity” as homeowners can’t draw enough home equity to swallow the costs of selling the home and moving upmarket. Many home owners rely on home equity to fund the broker’s fees and meet the next home’s down payment. Underwater borrowers threaten to leave a lingering chill in the housing market, the study’s authors concluded. “The unfortunate reality is that housing markets look to be swimming with underwater borrowers for years to come,” [said](http://zillow.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=159&item=437 "undefined") Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/105939/mortgage-underwater-negative-equity/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/105939/mortgage-underwater-negative-equity/"},"headline":"Nearly 10 Million Mortgaged Homes are Still Underwater","datePublished":"2014-05-20T14:24:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:56:20.718Z","description":"A new reports estimates some 18% of mortgaged homeowners are stuck with homes worth less than their debt, and that's an improvement over previous quarters","url":"https://time.com/105939/mortgage-underwater-negative-equity/","keywords":["real estate","housing","Recovery","prices","mortgages","underwater","foreclosure"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd147aac99d0e7489/6986903135ba6f1903c0212b/170291972.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dan Kedmey","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd147aac99d0e7489/6986903135ba6f1903c0212b/170291972.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Mortgage Bankers Association To Release Weekly Mortgage Market Index June 12","caption":"Mortgage Bankers Association To Release Weekly Mortgage Market Index June 12","creditText":"Daniel Acker—Bloomberg /Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/real-estate/","name":"real estate"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/105939/mortgage-underwater-negative-equity/","name":"Nearly 10 Million Mortgaged Homes are Still Underwater"}}]}] ```