Top 10 Cities Underwater on Mortgages in Q3

5. Phoenix

Homeowners with Negative Mortgages: 45.5%

Phoenix might be in the top five for the worst cities, but least it’s one spot better than it was a quarter ago. In Q3, 45.5% of its homeowners had negative equities — a drop of 6 percentage points. That was the largest improvement posted by any metropolitan area on the full list.

Last year, two-thirds of all residential mortgages were underwater as the median home price was down 53% since the bubble peaked in 2006. In fact, many were calling the area “the epicenter of the housing crisis” in 2011 — making its recent gains even more impressive, but also showing just how far Phoenix still has to go.

The Huffington Post recently listed Phoenix as the second-fastest-growing city in America, with just under a 90% increase expected by 2042. Hopefully, the housing market can get back on track as the city grows.