1 in 5 Homeowners Underwater

More than 20% of Americans with home mortgages owe more to their lenders than their homes are worth, a 2% rise since September, the Washington Post reports. The hardest-hit state was Nevada, where 55% of homeowners with mortgages have negative equity. These 8.3 million homeowners nationwide are much more likely to enter foreclosure; another 2.2 million are at risk of being “underwater,” in industry parlance. (More homeowners stories.)