The equity that owners have in their homes is an important share of the net worth of American families. For most of the last 25 years, homeowners’ equity has constituted about a quarter of total household wealth,about as much as their ownership of stocks (including the amounts in retirement accounts and mutual funds), and more than the value of unincorporated businesses and commercial and rental real estate combined.

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Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman al-Saud makes a speech during the forty-third Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on December 9, 2022. (Royal Court of Saudi Arabia/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)