Americans were less optimistic about buying or selling homes during October, according to the latest Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI).
Fannie Mae said its October HPSI fell 2 points to 85.7, with decreases in five of the six components measured.
“After hitting a survey high during the spring home buying season, the HPSI has trended downward, declining in October to its lowest level in a year,” Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan said in a release. “While the October drop was broad-based – all but one of the six HPSI components declined – the net share of consumers who said it’s a good time to buy a home posted the largest decrease, tying its second-lowest reading in the survey’s history. The further erosion of buying sentiment occurred despite generally positive views of the economy.”
According to the HPSI, the net share of Americans who in October said it is a good time to buy a home fell 5 percent; and the net share who said it is a good time to sell a home fell 3 percent.
Additionally, Fannie Mae said the net share of survey respondents who expected home prices to go up fell 2 percent, and the net share who expected mortgage rates to go down fell 1 percent. During October, the net share of Americans who were confident about not losing their job declined 1 percent.