Fewer loans in Toledo area 'underwater' in 2nd quarter

Fewer mortgages in the Toledo area surpassed the value of the homes in the second quarter of this year compared to the first quarter, a new study has found.

Still, the amount owed on about one of every three home loans in the area is greater than or about equal to the value of the house. Many mortgages amounts exceeded home values in the past two years as the housing market struggled and values plunged.

Similarly, fewer mortgages nationwide had negative equity in the spring than last winter, according to CoreLogic, a California real-estate data tracking firm.

The study, released Thursday, showed 25.7 percent of home loans in metro Toledo, or 35,662 loans, had negative equity in the latest quarter, compared with 26.9 percent in the first quarter of this year. CoreLogic said 6 percent, or 8,291, were considered near-negative equity in Toledo, also down from the first quarter.

Nationally, the study shows 23 percent of mortgages, or 11 million, were "underwater," the term used for a loan value greater than the declining value of the house. A quarter earlier, 24 percent or 11.2 million had negative equity.

CoreLogic found 36 percent of mortgages in Michigan had negative equity and nearly 6 percent more had near-negative equity. In Ohio, 19.7 percent had negative equity and more than 6 percent had near-negative equity.