Housing Bubble 2.0: Homeowners tapping into equity at fastest rate in 8 years

Do you want another sign that the housing bubble is 2006 all over again? Here is one: homeowners are tapping into their equity at the fastest rate in eight years.

Thanks to the printing press at the Federal Reserve, home prices are surging, and this is providing homeowners with immense equity. In 2016, homeowners garnered a collective $570 billion, and nearly 40 million now have tappable equity.

Homeowners, particularly millennials, are tapping into that equity, says a new report from CNBC.

Ostensibly, the report says, home equity lines of credit (HELOC), which are second loans outside of the main mortgage, are becoming a popular tool for so many homeowners. And millennials are utilizing HELOCs more than Baby Boomers or Generation Xers. A recent TD Bank survey found that one-third of millennial homeowners are considering applying for a HELOC within the next 18 months, which is double that of Gen Xers and nine times that of Baby Boomers.

You can blame low mortgage rates and a majority of borrowers having FICO scores above the national average for this trend.

So, what exactly are today’s homeowners using the equity for? Home renovation and debt consolidation.

Speaking with experts, the report suggested that many expect even more homeowners to seek out HELOCs in the future.