> I suppose if you want to be pedantic and say mortgaged homes are owned by the bank

Well, pedantically, you own the home, but the bank has a lien, and contractual rights in the event of default. But the title is in your name.

Contrast to a vehicle, where the lender is the Legal Owner on registration docs, and retains title (in all but two states, I believe).

I've seen vehicle registration documents with an owner and a lienholder. But the lienholder is also in possession of the title (which may be electronic). I see a few more than two states where the owner is in possession of the title, but I haven't lived in any of those.

I think the difference is for real estate, title documents and liens are recorded, whereas for vehicles, titles are registered, and possession of the physical title is almost enough to change the registration; it makes sense for the lender to physically hold the title until the loan is satisfied, in order to prevent a sale without paying back the loan.