Mortgage Loan-to-Value (LTV): How Much Debt Do Americans Carry Against Their Property Value?

• Mortgages outstanding by loan-to-value
• Historical average loan-to-value
• What is a good loan-to-value ratio?

Mortgage loan-to-value on mortgage in the US on a mark-to-market basis

Here is a breakdown on the percentage of mortgages outstanding based on the current mark-to-market loan-to-value in Q2 2024.

• 61.20% of mortgages have a loan-to-value less than 60%
• 15.10% of mortgages have a loan-to-value between 61% and 70%
• 11.20% of mortgages have a loan-to-value between 71% and 80%
• 6.50% of mortgages have a loan-to-value between 81% and 90%
• 5.50% of mortgages have a loan-to-value between 91% and 100%
• 0.40% of mortgages have a loan-to-value more than 100%

Historical average loan-to-value on mortgages (2013 to 2024)

The average loan-to-value on outstanding mortages in the United States is 54.90% as of Q2 2024 — this is a substantial decrease from the average loan-to-value of 79.50% in 2013. This decrease in loan-to-value or increase in equity as a percentage of home value is in large part due to home prices increasing substantially from 2013 to 2024.

This is especially evident in the past 5-years where the median home price increased — and the percentage of homeowners with loan-to-value ratios below 60% increased from 44.20% in Q1 of 2020 to 61.20% in Q2 of 2024.

What is a good loan-to-value ratio?

Many mortgage have different loan-to-value requirements based on the type of loan. Conventional loans require a loan-to-value of 80% to avoid paying for private mortgage insurance. Other loan types such as VA can have a loan-to-value of 100% — which means no down payment is required.