Fannie Mae: Rosier Economic Sentiment Boosts Housing Attitudes

Fannie Mae, Washington, D.C., said its Home Purchase Sentiment Index increased by 2 percentage points in January to 82.7, ending a five-month decline.

Four of the six components comprising the index rose in January. The net share of Americans who believe home prices will go up in the next 12 months rose by 7 percentage points, while the net share reporting significantly higher household income in the past 12 months rose by 5 percentage points. The net percentage of those who say that it is a good time to sell a house rose by 2 percentage points, while the net share of those who say it is a good time to buy a house fell by 3 percentage points.

On net, said Fannie Mae Chief Economists Doug Duncan, consumers demonstrated slightly greater confidence about not losing their jobs, while the net share of those who believe mortgage rates will go down remained unchanged.

“Three months after the presidential election, measures of consumer optimism regarding personal financial prospects and the economy are at or near the highest levels we’ve seen,” Duncan said. “However, any significant acceleration in housing activity will depend on whether consumers’ favorable expectations are realized in the form of income gains sufficient to offset constrained housing affordability. If consumers’ anticipation of further increases in home prices and mortgage rates materialize over the next 12 months, then we may see housing affordability tighten even more.”

Other report data:

–The net share of Americans who say it is a good time to buy a house fell by 3 percentage points to 29%, matching the survey low from May and September 2016.
–The net percentage of those who say it is a good time to sell rose by 2 percentage points to 15%.
–The net share of Americans who say that home prices will go up increased by 7 percentage points in January to 42%.
–The net share of those who say mortgage rates will go down over the next 12 months remained constant this month at -55%.
–The net share of Americans who say they are not concerned about losing their job rose 1 percentage point to 69%.
–The net share of Americans who say their household income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago rose 5 percentage points to 15% in December, reversing the drop in December.