If you ever needed proof that home ownership is an effective way to build wealth, last year should have removed all doubt. Homes appreciated at a record rate in 2021.

Home prices in the Denver-metro area increased 16.68% from 2020 to 2021. The last record high increase was 15.77% in 2000, according to Steve Danyliw, past chair of the Denver Metro Association of Realtors (DMAR) Market Trends Committee, writing in  DMAR’s market report.

The average attached single-family home increased $54,377 in equity, while detached single-family homes appreciated $106,718. “Both figures are the largest dollar gains on record,” reports the Denver Business Journal.

The moral of the story? Home ownership pays off. “Those who already owned a home in 2021 were winners in the market, wrote Danyliw.