What happens if I walk away from my home but can still afford the note?

Your's is a difficult question but it is one that many people are having to face in these hard economic times.  I will assume you had at least some equity when you made the purchase, but that now you owe more than the property is worth.  My thoughts are: 1.    If you walk away you will certainly do much damage to your credit.  In addition, you cannot be certain that the mortgage lender will foreclose and simply accept the financial results.  For example, if you owe $140,000.00 on the note and the house is worth only $100,000.00, a re-sale after foreclosure might not net the lender more than, say, $75,000.00.  So, the lender has lost $65,000.00.  Will it be content?  Probably not.  If you have assets and a job, there is reasonable likelihood that the lender will sue you on the note for the $65,000.00 loss.  After all, when the loan closed, you signed a note stating that you would re-pay the loan of $140,000.00.  2.    If you have the capacity to hang in and make the payments, there is some reasonable expectation that the real estate market will bottom out and begin again to appreciate in value.  In other words, there is hope that the present loss will be reversed at some point in the future.  3.