Owning a home gives you the opportunity to build home equity.

What is home equity?
Equity= how much your home is worth – how much you owe on your home

If your house is paid off and you owe nothing towards it, you own 100% equity in it.

How to build equity:
1. A decrease in the amount you owe on your property

Decreasing the amount you owe on your property is done each month when you pay your mortgage payment. To decrease this amount owed sooner, you’d pay more towards it each month.

2. An increase in your property value

There are couple different ways your property value can increase. One is by making improvements to your home. Improvements can add equity to your home if it raises the property value. Another way to increase your property value is to let it grow over time. If you live in an area that is growing you can expect your property value to go up. Your property value can also depreciate this way as well depending on economic conditions, the condition of you home, or the homes in your neighborhood drop value.