Despite feeling more pessimistic overall, a recent survey of Americans found that an increasing number said now was a good time to buy a house. Fannie Mae's Home Purchase Sentiment Index – which tracks consumer attitudes toward buying and selling a home, mortgage rates, wages, home prices, and more – saw a 2 percent increase in the number of respondents who said it was a good time to buy and a 4 percent bump in participants who said it was time to sell.
Despite the improvement, the overall index fell for the third straight month. Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae's senior vice president and chief economist, says uncertainty is taking its toll. “The HPSI fell in October for the third straight month from its record high in July, reaching the lowest level since March. Recent erosion in sentiment likely reflects, in part, enhanced uncertainty facing consumers today,” Duncan said. “Since July, more consumers, on net, have steadily expected mortgage rates to rise and home price appreciation to moderate.
Furthermore, consumers' perception of their income over the past year deteriorated sharply in October to the worst showing since early 2013, weighing on the index. However, this component of the HPSI is volatile from month to month, and the firming trend in wage gains from the October jobs report, if sustained, may foreshadow an improving view in the near future.”
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