Housing Is a Good Long-Term Investment

Here are some financial benefits to owning a home:

· Over the past 30 years, home values have risen more than 6 percent annually.

· On average, the value of a home has nearly doubled every 10 years.

· 60 percent of the average homeowner’s wealth comes from their home’s equity.

· The average homeowner’s net worth is $171,000 – that’s nearly 46 times that of a renter’s, who has an average net worth of $4,800.

· Homeowner’s benefit from the power of leverage. At an annual appreciation rate of 5 percent, a 10 percent down payment on a home will return 94 percent after 3 years. After 5 years, the rate of return increases to 225 percent and after 10 years, 623 percent.

* All information provided by the national Association of Realtors. This is not a promise of future returns. Data based on historic percentage returns.