You're not financing the mortgage insurance and you build equity faster.

As long as housing prices don't go down, consumers have more equity they can borrow against. If mortgage rates go up another 1.25 or 1.5 percent and pierce 7 percent -- watch out. That's when the housing bubble bursts and consumers would cut back on spending a lot.

[The Coopers bit. They purchased flood insurance and a DMP policy. Their mortgage payment is $1,500 to $2,000 a month. Their premium: $251 a year.] With the mortgage payment we have, it's like, 'Wow! One month, and it's paid!,' ... So, it was really a no brainer.

We've received great feedback from brokers who have already subscribed to our home equity lead service. Mortgage brokers can be on the phone talking to a lead seconds after the consumer has requested a quote, and when their interest as at it's highest.

And if not for the gyrations in the equity market, it would have been a lot thinner.

The highest-income Americans don't need tax-free health insurance, mortgage interest deductions or deferred taxation on retirement funds.