Consumer attitudes about the housing market are on the upswing, according to new data from Fannie Mae
Consumer attitudes about the housing market are on the upswing, according to new data from Fannie Mae.
The results of Fannie’s May 2015 National Housing Survey show consumers are becoming more positive about the housing market as average hourly earnings accelerate and personal income growth firms up. The share of survey respondents who believe it’s a good time to sell a home reached an all-time high last month, and those saying they’d prefer to buy rather than rent on their next move jumped three points to 65%.
“Things are looking up for housing,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Those saying it is a good time to sell a house hit a survey high of 49%. Alsoo, the percentage of consumers telling us their household income is significantly higher than 12 months ago grew six percentage points to 28% over the last two months. we have found that these two indicators – good time to sell and income growth – are key drivers for the performance of the housing market and play an important role in our soon-to-be-released Home Purchase Sentiment Index. The increase in these indicators suggests our forecast of moderate improvement in the housing market in 2015 is on course and mirrors the near-term performance of other leading market data, including mortgage applications and pending home sales.”
The survey also found that the share of consumers who think mortgage rates will go up in the next 12 months fell to 47%, while the share who think it’s a good time to buy a house rose to 66%. The share who say they’d buy if they were going to move rose to 66%, while the share who say they would rent fell to 27%.
The results of Fannie’s May 2015 National Housing Survey show consumers are becoming more positive about the housing market as average hourly earnings accelerate and personal income growth firms up. The share of survey respondents who believe it’s a good time to sell a home reached an all-time high last month, and those saying they’d prefer to buy rather than rent on their next move jumped three points to 65%.
“Things are looking up for housing,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Those saying it is a good time to sell a house hit a survey high of 49%. Alsoo, the percentage of consumers telling us their household income is significantly higher than 12 months ago grew six percentage points to 28% over the last two months. we have found that these two indicators – good time to sell and income growth – are key drivers for the performance of the housing market and play an important role in our soon-to-be-released Home Purchase Sentiment Index. The increase in these indicators suggests our forecast of moderate improvement in the housing market in 2015 is on course and mirrors the near-term performance of other leading market data, including mortgage applications and pending home sales.”
The survey also found that the share of consumers who think mortgage rates will go up in the next 12 months fell to 47%, while the share who think it’s a good time to buy a house rose to 66%. The share who say they’d buy if they were going to move rose to 66%, while the share who say they would rent fell to 27%.
