Map Shows Where Mortgage Debt Is Rising

Mortgage rates are rising in states across the country, but the level of housing debt hasn’t been the same everywhere.

Altogether, Americans owe $12 trillion on their mortgages, but a new report from WalletHub found a few states were leading the pack when it came to overall mortgage debt.

The largest increases in debt were noted in the following 10 states: Maryland, Nevada, Hawaii, Texas, Arizona, California, Massachusetts, New York, Maine and Alaska.

Homeowners were far better off in states with the smallest increases, which included Mississippi, Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, Idaho, Montana, Connecticut, Wyoming, Delaware and Vermont.

The average household owes roughly $100,000, but mortgage rates and home prices have been increasing over the past several years.

“Mortgage rates are the highest they’ve been in around a decade, and home prices have seen a meteoric rise in recent years as well,” John Kiernan, WalletHub’s editor, said in a statement. “Even small increases in home prices can lead to thousands of dollars in extra mortgage interest costs for homeowners, so it’s important to choose wisely when deciding where and when to buy a house.”

In Maryland, the top state for rising mortgage debt, the average balance increased by 1.23 percent to $283,092. It was the only state that sustained an uptick of more than 1 percent.

Colin Robertson, owner of The Truth About Mortgage and a former account executive, said property values nationwide have been skyrocketing due to a low supply of inventory.

“This means today’s homebuyers face a one-two punch of a larger loan amount at a significantly higher interest rate,” Robertson told Newsweek. “In addition, most existing homeowners are only refinancing their mortgages if they’re in dire need of cash, which further increases their debt load and puts additional strain on household balance sheets.”

Hawaii homes were definitely not cheap either, as the state in third for highest mortgage debt saw the average debt balance grow to $366,362. Only four other states had an average balance above $300,000, and many boasted average debts under $200,000.

“With inflation being what it has been in recent years, many folks have tapped into their home equity to reduce or eliminate the high interest rate credit card balances that some families needed to fall back on to keep up with increasing expenses,” Alan Chang, founder and president of Vested Title & Escrow, told Newsweek.

Chang said because of the current real estate market, many transactions are involving deeds in lieu of foreclosure.

“Typically, this would only happen when the borrower is upside down with no remaining equity available,” Chang said, adding this isn’t a good sign for the overall housing market. “For years, I didn’t see these transactions as home values were on a steady increasing trajectory, now I’m starting to see them come back to life.”