Among Illinois’ most populous urban centers, the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Metro East, posted the highest percentage of mortgages that owe at least 25 percent more on their loans than their property is worth, according to a home equity analysis by ATTOM Data Solutions.
In the St. Louis MSA, 14.7 percent of mortgages -- representing 95,796 properties -- were ranked “seriously underwater” in the first quarter of this year, compared to 13.8 percent in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin MSA.
The analysis, which ranked only urban areas with 500,000 or more people, is based on a home’s estimated market value.
Altogether, U.S. states, including the District of Columbia, had 5.2 million properties considered seriously underwater at the end of March. That includes 9.5 percent of all properties with a mortgage, which is two-tenths of a percentage point lower than at the end of the first quarter last year.
Highest 'underwater' mortgage percentages among metro areas
| MSA | State | Population | Housing Units | Total Seriously Underwater | % of Seriously Underwater |
| Scranton--Wilkes-Barre--Hazleton | PA | 559,898 | 258,929 | 14,055 | 21.9% |
| Baton Rouge | LA | 824,667 | 342,165 | 21,740 | 19.9% |
| Youngstown-Warren-Boardman | OH-PA | 552,521 | 258,345 | 16,876 | 19.5% |
| New Orleans-Metairie | LA | 1,250,247 | 553,791 | 25,701 | 18.5% |
| Toledo | OH | 606,684 | 273,080 | 21,617 | 18.0% |
| Wichita | KS | 640,505 | 270,248 | 17,979 | 17.3% |
| Harrisburg-Carlisle | PA | 561,447 | 245,147 | 16,033 | 16.9% |
| Cleveland-Elyria | OH | 2,061,630 | 956,766 | 77,282 | 16.5% |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis | WI | 1,571,730 | 672,345 | 39,715 | 16.0% |
| Dayton | OH | 800,950 | 367,700 | 27,293 | 15.5% |
| Akron | OH | 703,168 | 313,270 | 25,295 | 15.3% |
| St. Louis | MO-IL | 2,803,449 | 1,237,807 | 95,796 | 14.7% |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | IL-IN-WI | 9,528,396 | 3,806,802 | 272,166 | 13.8% |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn | MI | 4,296,731 | 1,893,454 | 117,084 | 13.6% |
| Virginia Beach-Norfolk-
Newport News | VA-NC | 1,714,428 | 706,394 | 45,997 | 13.4% |
| Kansas City | MO-KS | 2,070,147 | 885,626 | 51,822 | 13.4% |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson | IN | 1,968,768 | 836,782 | 48,432 | 12.7% |
| Syracuse | NY | 660,652 | 289,965 | 9,365 | 12.7% |
| Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers | AR-MO | 503,642 | 205,416 | 11,699 | 12.6% |
| Little Rock-North Little Rock-
Conway | AR | 727,371 | 318,085 | 15,979 | 12.4% |
| Memphis | TN-MS-AR | 1,341,339 | 563,649 | 28,423 | 12.1% |
| Louisville-Jefferson County | KY-IN | 1,269,550 | 548,435 | 23,763 | 11.9% |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell | GA | 5,612,777 | 2,219,590 | 128,164 | 11.8% |
| Cincinnati | OH-KY-IN | 2,146,410 | 919,236 | 52,823 | 11.8% |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines | IA | 611,755 | 253,912 | 16,537 | 11.7% |
| Columbia | SC | 800,559 | 342,212 | 15,711 | 11.5% |
| Augusta-Richmond County | GA-SC | 584,964 | 249,314 | 11,199 | 11.5% |
| Birmingham-Hoover | AL | 1,141,309 | 507,518 | 19,521 | 11.4% |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson | MD | 2,780,873 | 1,150,430 | 75,830 | 11.3% |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington | PA-NJ-DE-MD | 6,047,721 | 2,449,355 | 146,701 | 11.3% |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven | FL | 637,691 | 283,333 | 13,224 | 11.2% |
| Winston-Salem | NC | 654,589 | 291,225 | 14,662 | 11.2% |
| Tulsa | OK | 970,603 | 421,536 | 20,562 | 11.0% |
| Columbus | OH | 1,995,004 | 839,488 | 46,622 | 11.0% |
| Chattanooga | TN-GA | 544,522 | 238,504 | 10,597 | 10.8% |
| Oklahoma City | OK | 1,337,075 | 557,461 | 28,335 | 10.7% |
| Greensboro-High Point | NC | 746,301 | 328,431 | 13,425 | 10.7% |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise | NV | 2,070,153 | 864,164 | 49,199 | 10.5% |
| Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton | PA-NJ | 830,737 | 344,453 | 18,754 | 10.5% |
| Grand Rapids-Wyoming | MI | 1,028,173 | 408,968 | 23,029 | 10.4% |
| Jacksonville | FL | 1,424,097 | 616,472 | 32,610 | 10.3% |
| Jackson | MS | 578,095 | 237,698 | 1,779 | 10.2% |
| Knoxville | TN | 857,111 | 387,109 | 17,424 | 10.1% |
| Pittsburgh | PA | 2,354,926 | 1,105,969 | 38,587 | 10.0% |
| Omaha-Council Bluffs | NE-IA | 904,834 | 374,190 | 19,424 | 10.0% |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission | TX | 828,334 | 261,496 | 7,040 | 9.7% |
| Bakersfield | CA | 871,337 | 291,292 | 15,498 | 9.6% |
| Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond
Beach | FL | 613,723 | 305,821 | 14,561 | 9.4% |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach | FL | 5,926,955 | 2,496,696 | 108,987 | 9.4% |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater | FL | 2,927,714 | 1,376,984 | 60,142 | 9.4% |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers | FL | 680,970 | 377,081 | 15,304 | 9.3% |
| Tucson | AZ | 1,003,338 | 450,828 | 21,041 | 9.3% |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford | FL | 2,328,508 | 976,455 | 44,816 | 9.2% |
| Lancaster | PA | 533,110 | 206,308 | 10,271 | 9.2% |
| Madison | WI | 634,269 | 275,682 | 10,470 | 9.1% |
| El Paso | TX | 837,073 | 287,792 | 11,446 | 9.0% |
| North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton | FL | 751,422 | 410,952 | 16,188 | 8.4% |
| Fresno | CA | 963,160 | 323,857 | 14,004 | 8.2% |
| Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville | FL | 560,683 | 272,437 | 11,653 | 8.2% |
| Richmond | VA | 1,258,158 | 518,998 | 19,621 | 7.9% |
| Albuquerque | NM | 904,486 | 380,218 | 14,747 | 7.9% |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy | NY | 879,291 | 397,658 | 7,877 | 7.4% |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria | DC-VA-MD-WV | 6,011,752 | 2,303,093 | 99,287 | 7.4% |
| Providence-Warwick | RI-MA | 1,609,359 | 693,904 | 25,211 | 7.4% |
| Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin | SC | 862,064 | 369,921 | 10,628 | 7.3% |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City | NY-NJ-PA | 20,031,443 | 7,874,833 | 180,481 | 7.2% |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale | AZ | 4,486,153 | 1,846,867 | 76,324 | 7.2% |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia | NC-SC | 2,381,152 | 974,598 | 35,474 | 7.2% |
| Rochester | NY | 1,082,226 | 475,070 | 10,258 | 6.7% |
| Charleston-North Charleston | SC | 728,271 | 313,703 | 9,577 | 6.7% |
| Durham-Chapel Hill | NC | 542,399 | 232,895 | 5,793 | 6.6% |
| Nashville-Davidson--
Murfreesboro--Franklin | TN | 1,794,570 | 733,796 | 26,977 | 6.5% |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington | MN-WI | 3,488,436 | 1,414,179 | 42,667 | 6.5% |
| Boise City | ID | 663,680 | 256,399 | 9,657 | 6.1% |
| Provo-Orem | UT | 574,684 | 162,263 | 6,201 | 5.8% |
| Spokane-Spokane Valley | WA | 542,604 | 236,197 | 6,584 | 5.5% |
| Stockton-Lodi | CA | 714,860 | 237,752 | 7,573 | 5.5% |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | CA | 4,430,646 | 1,528,742 | 48,226 | 5.5% |
| Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls | NY | 1,135,503 | 520,523 | 10,157 | 5.3% |
| Modesto | CA | 530,561 | 180,386 | 5,438 | 5.3% |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land | TX | 6,482,592 | 2,448,566 | 53,988 | 4.9% |
| Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade | CA | 2,242,542 | 885,251 | 24,503 | 4.7% |
| Ogden-Clearfield | UT | 632,793 | 212,777 | 6,000 | 4.5% |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | TX | 2,332,345 | 864,566 | 17,821 | 4.4% |
| Raleigh | NC | 1,243,720 | 498,384 | 11,416 | 4.4% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | TX | 6,957,123 | 2,650,896 | 55,270 | 4.4% |
| Austin-Round Rock | TX | 1,942,615 | 764,989 | 16,053 | 4.4% |
| Urban Honolulu | HI | 986,999 | 342,982 | 6,370 | 3.8% |
| Colorado Springs | CO | 688,643 | 278,294 | 6,542 | 3.7% |
| San Diego-Carlsbad | CA | 3,253,356 | 1,187,644 | 21,546 | 3.4% |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | CA | 843,110 | 284,759 | 5,898 | 3.3% |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro | OR-WA | 2,351,319 | 950,203 | 17,268 | 3.2% |
| Salt Lake City | UT | 1,154,504 | 397,381 | 7,424 | 3.1% |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim | CA | 13,189,366 | 4,562,239 | 68,323 | 3.1% |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue | WA | 3,671,095 | 1,513,374 | 27,152 | 3.0% |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood | CO | 2,752,056 | 1,118,261 | 20,431 | 3.0% |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward | CA | 4,577,530 | 1,772,411 | 21,949 | 2.4% |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara | CA | 1,943,107 | 670,044 | 4,184 | 1.1% |
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