Does net worth include your home?
How to value your home
- Use current market value — what it would sell for now, not the purchase price or the tax assessment.
- Automated estimates and recent comparable sales nearby are reasonable starting points; be conservative rather than optimistic.
- Some people subtract roughly 5–8% for selling costs to get a more honest figure.
Why some people leave the home out
- You have to live somewhere: selling your home doesn't free up the full equity if you must buy or rent another.
- For retirement or financial-independence planning, many people also track a second number — net worth excluding the primary residence — because it shows the assets that can actually fund spending.
- Both views are valid. Standard definitions, including the Federal Reserve's, count the home.
Rentals and other property
- Rental property, land and vacation homes count the same way: market value minus any loan against them.
Common questions
Is home equity part of net worth?
Yes. Home equity — market value minus what you owe on the mortgage — is usually the largest single part of net worth for homeowners.
Should I use the purchase price or the current value?
Current market value. Net worth is a snapshot of today, so the price you paid years ago doesn't apply.
Do homeowners have a higher net worth?
On average, much higher: the median homeowner family's net worth is $434,000 versus $11,400 for renters (Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances (2022)). Home equity is a big part of the gap, but homeowners also tend to be older.
Does Caliper value my home automatically?
Yes. Caliper estimates your home's value from property data and tracks it alongside your mortgage balance, so your equity updates without manual entry.
Let it add itself up
Caliper is the AI net worth tracker: link your accounts once and it keeps every balance, your home's value and your car's value current — and you can ask its AI analyst questions about your own numbers.
Track your net worth free →