Fannie Mae Housing Confidence Index Hits Record High

Fannie Mae, Washington, D.C., said its Home Purchase Sentiment Index rose by 3.4 points in April to 91.7, a record survey high.

Fannie Mae attributed the increase to improvements in five of the six HPSI components:

–The net share of Americans who say it is a good time to buy a home decreased 3 percentage points to 29%.

–The net share of those who say it is a good time to sell rose 6 percentage points to 45%, reaching a new survey high.

–The net share of Americans who say home prices will go up increased 7 percentage points to 49% in April.

–The net share of those who say mortgage rates will go down over the next 12 months increased 4 percentage points to -48%.

–The net share of Americans who say they are not concerned about losing their job increased 5 percentage points to 76% in April.

–The net share of those who say their household income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago rose 1 percentage point to 18%.

“Consumer attitudes remain resilient going into the spring/summer home buying season,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist with Fannie Mae. “High home prices and good economic conditions helped push the share of Americans who think it’s a good time to sell to a fresh record high. However, the upward trend in the good-time-to-sell share seen since last spring has done little to release more for-sale inventory. The tightest supply in decades, combined with rising mortgage rates from historically low levels, will likely remain a hurdle for mobility and a persistent headwind for home sales.”

Fannie Mae said its index is up 5.0 points from a year ago.