Home Owners Overestimate Their Equity

The amount home owners estimate their home is worth is growing out of proportion with appraisers' estimates, with the gap widening for the first time in six months, according to Quicken Loans' latest Home Price Perception Index.

On average, appraisers' estimates were about 2 percent lower than what home owners expected in February. The Quicken Loans study compares actual appraised values to what home owners who are refinancing estimate their home is worth at the beginning of the mortgage process.

"While it is always disappointing for home owners to learn they don't have quite the home equity they expected, the national HPPI is still within a normal range," says Quicken Loans Chief Economist Bob Walters. "In an ever-changing real estate market, home values fluctuate, and these changes are most quickly realized by appraisers who are evaluating local sales every single day."

Appraisers' estimates were most often higher than home owners' in the Western region of the country. In San Jose, Calif., for example, appraisals were 4.35 percent higher than home owners expected.