With a mortgage, in some sense you really don't own your own home. You have equity in the home, and the home is collateral on your debt for the home, so until y

With a mortgage, in some sense you really don't own your own home. You have equity in the home, and the home is collateral on your debt for the home, so until you've payed everything off, the bank owns the home. Equity and Ownership are related, but not equivalent concepts.