By Brooklee Han | HousingWire
Despite continued home price appreciation and a volatile mortgage rate environment that has resulted in the least affordable housing market in decades, there remains a minority of consumers who still feel that now is a good time to buy a home.
According to Fannie Mae‘s latest Home Purchase Sentiment Index, 19% of consumers feel that now is a good time to buy a home. In August, 22% of consumers said it was a good time to buy. The housing market index fell 1.2 points in September to 60.8, marking the seventh consecutive month of declines. The index is down 13.7 points from this time last year.
In September, 75% of consumers said it was a bad time to buy, up from 73% in August.
“The HPSI declined this month to its lowest level since October 2011,” Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s senior vice president and chief economist, said in a statement. “Moreover, 75% of consumers still think it’s a bad time to buy a home, with most citing high home prices and unfavorable economic and mortgage rate conditions as primary reasons.”
On the seller side, 59% said it was a good time to sell, remaining unchanged from a month ago, while the share of respondents who said it is a bad time to sell dropped to 33% from 35% in August, which is good news for real estate agents who have been struggling to generate listings in a brutal housing market.
