hopefully most of them “owe more than the value”, not “paid more than the value”.
Meaning, they did a cash-out refinance right before the peak. At a good interest rate. Good timing.
People who paid more than today’s value… well… unfortunate timing on the purchase. Maybe they’re luckier when they sell. If they’re still below their purchase price today, maybe their heirs have to unload it to break even.
Many will walk away
That’s ~2% of home owners. I don’t think people in the bay area realize how much slower the recovery has been in the rest of the country. If you look at wealth accumulation since 2008, it’d be interesting to see how much is concentrated in a few areas. I’d bet the bay area, Seattle, Austin, NYC, and 2-3 other cities have a majority of wealth gains.