The Six-Figure Secret Hiding Behind Your Drywall

by Allen Faircloth

Buying a House With Cash: Advantages and Disadvantages | 2026 | Bungalow

When was the last time you checked what your house is actually worth?

And no, checking a sketchy online Zestimate at 2:00 AM while eating shredded cheese directly out of the bag doesn't count. Neither does asking your neighbor Dave, who thinks his unpermitted DIY deck adds $100,000 to his property value.

If you’ve been holding off on moving because today’s interest rates make you want to lie down in a dark room, we get it. But there’s a massive piece of the puzzle you might be ignoring: Home Equity.

In our area, the average homeowner with a mortgage is sitting on roughly $181,505 in equity. Read that again. That is a cool six-figure stack of cash casually hiding inside your drywall.

Whether you're chilling in Johnston County, holding it down in Harnett, living your best life in Southern and Eastern Wake, or holding prime ground in Cumberland County, property values have soared over the last decade. Every monthly mortgage payment you made (even the ones you grumbled about) was secretly building you a giant piggy bank.

What Can You Actually Do With That Giant Pile of Cash?

You might think, "Sure, but moving right now is crazy!" Is it, though? When you have six figures in equity, you aren't starting from scratch like a wide-eyed first-time buyer surviving on ramen. You’re coming into the market like a big shot with options.

Here is what that equity number can do for you:

Slay Your Next Monthly Payment: Toss a huge equity-backed down payment at your next house. The less money you have to borrow, the less today's interest rates can hurt your feelings.
Go Full Baller (Buy in Cash): It sounds fake, but nearly one in four repeat buyers are paying 100% cash right now. You might literally have enough equity to buy your next place outright and bid farewell to mortgage payments forever.
Make Your Current House Cool Again: Love your neighborhood in Benson, Fuquay-Varina, Lillington, or Hope Mills, but hate your 1990s kitchen? Use your equity to fund a dream renovation.

Stop Guessing. Call Anthem Properties.

Look, equity isn't helpful if it's just a mystery number floating in the ether. You need to know exactly what your home would bring on the local market today.

That’s where Anthem Properties comes in. As the real estate agency of choice across Johnston, Harnett, Southern & Eastern Wake, and Cumberland counties, the team at Anthem Properties will skip the algorithms and give you a real, honest Professional Equity Assessment.

They'll crunch the actual local numbers, show you what your home is really worth, and help you map out your next move—whether that's upgrading, downsizing, or finally getting that backyard pool.

Stop wondering if you can afford your next chapter. Reach out to Anthem Properties today, find out your number, and see just how much power you're sitting on!