negative equity
noun
: a situation in which the amount of money that a person owes for something (such as a house or a car) is more than the thing is worth
Examples of negative equity in a Sentence
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More than one-quarter of trade-ins had more than $10,000 in negative equity — also a record high.
—
Lorie Konish, CNBC, 15 Jan. 2026
The average down payment for consumers with a negative equity trade-in during the third quarter of 2025 was $2,721.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
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Lorie Konish, CNBC, 15 Jan. 2026
The average down payment for consumers with a negative equity trade-in during the third quarter of 2025 was $2,721.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Negative equity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/negative%20equity. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
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