Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index Improves Slightly in July

Fannie Mae on Monday (8-7-23) released its Home Purchase Sentiment Index® for July. According to the report, the HPSI increased slightly, as consumers’ confidence regarding their personal financial situation was largely offset by further pessimism toward homebuying conditions.

In July, three of the HPSI’s six components increased month-over-month, including the components that measure job security and home price expectations. Nonetheless, 82% of consumers reported that it is a “bad time to buy” a home, a new survey high and up from 78% in June. The full index is up 4.0 points year-over-year.

In remarks prepared to accompany the June HPSI report, Fannie Mae Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Doug Duncan said:

“While consumers are reporting confidence in the components related to their personal financial situations, it’s unlikely we’ll see housing sentiment catch up to other broader economic confidence measures until there is meaningful improvement to home purchase affordability.

In July, a significant majority of consumers indicated that their jobs are stable and that their incomes are the same or better than they were twelve months ago. However, homebuying sentiment once again matched its all-time low, with only 18% telling us that it’s a good time to buy a home. Unsurprisingly, consumers continue to attribute the challenging conditions to high home prices and unfavorable mortgage rates. Further, the share of consumers expecting home prices to continue to rise has also been on a steady climb since March, which may only add to perceptions of unaffordability. Additionally, we have not seen much movement in the ‘good time to sell’ component over the last few months, an indication that the current low levels of existing homes for sale will likely continue to persist in the near term, as also reflected in our latest forecast.”