Americans’ Housing Confidence Hits New High

Before anything else, the decision to buy or sell a house starts with a feeling. Maybe it’s feeling too cramped in your current house or feeling financially secure enough to trade up, but, whatever the case, you have to feel something. Maybe most importantly, you have to feel confident that it’s the right time for you and that you’re in a good position to move. That’s why Fannie Mae takes a monthly measure of Americans’ confidence in the housing market and their personal financial situation. And, according to their most recent release, Americans are feeling good. In fact, the Home Purchase Sentiment Index hit a new all-time survey high in April. Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s chief economist, says consumers’ attitudes about the housing market are resilient, despite some challenges. “The latest HPSI reading edged up to a new survey high, showing that consumer attitudes remain resilient going into the spring/summer home buying season,” Duncan said. “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.” More here.