US homeowners have enjoyed a $9.7trn gain in equity during the last 10 years, according to a special report by CoreLogic titled The Role of Housing in the Longest Economic Expansion.

The report analyses the US housing market's impact on the latest 121-month economic expansion rising from June 2009 through July 2019. It found that employment rates typically have a positive impact on the housing economy as it can lead to an increase in potential home buyers and a decrease in negative equity.

In Q1 2010, 26% of mortgaged residential properties in the US were in negative equity. As the market has improved over the past decade, this has dropped to 4.1% in Q1 2019. A strong economy and an increase in total home equity helped to reduce the negative equity share. Total home equity reached a record of $15.8trn at the end of the first quarter of 2019, up from $6.1trn in the first quarter of 2009.

“During the last nine years, the expansion has created more than 20m jobs, raised family incomes and rebuilt consumer confidence,” said Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic. “The longest stretch of mortgage rates below 5% in more than 60 years has supplemented these factors. These economic forces have driven a recovery in home sales, construction, prices and home equity wealth.”