There’s a huge cushion between what a typical California homeowner with a mortgage owes and what their property is worth.
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My trusty spreadsheet reviewed a CoreLogic report for the first quarter of 2026 detailing a curious measure of housing health that compares borrowings with estimated values. That gap is what’s called a homeowner’s equity – the byproduct of down payments, housing appreciation and swings in loan balances.
By this math, the average equity across the Golden State at the start of 2026 was a stunning $627,000 for mortgaged homes. This does not include properties that are owned free of any loans.
This equity is a gauge of both ownership wealth and housing security. It can be seen as a financial cushion if tough times hit – either for the borrower or the entire market.
Note that California’s average equity was the second-highest among the states and slightly more than double the nation’s $310,500 — only Hawaii was higher at $688,000. Massachusetts was No. 3 at $480,000.
Big bounty
California’s lofty real estate bounty helps explain many economic quirks of the state: from the wealthy vibes in a high-cost state to why so few Californians move to how much cash it takes to join the ownership game and residents’ overly protective nature about their neighborhoods. (You know, NIMBYism!)
Because serious money is at stake.
Ponder the national lows for equity: Louisiana at $115,000, Oklahoma at $124,000, and Iowa at $124,000.
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Or think about California’s economic archrivals: Texas ranked No. 35 at $200,000, while Florida ranked No. 19 at $288,000.
Total take
Then consider this pile of money as a statewide stash.
Take all that equity, multiply it by California’s 6.6 million mortgaged properties, and you get $4.1 trillion in value above what’s owed.
That total equity is easily the nation’s top and represents 23% of the nation’s $17.9 trillion in home value above mortgages owed.
Yes, California’s almost one-quarter of the U.S. total.
No. 2 is Florida at $1 trillion, then comes New York at $995 billion. Texas ranked No. 4 at $935 billion.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at [email protected]
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