Each month, Fannie Mae asks Americans how they feel about the housing market, mortgage rates, prices, and whether it’s a good time to buy or sell a home. Their monthly survey is a good gauge of what’s happening in today’s market and what’s ahead for buyers and sellers. In August, survey results were mixed. For example, the number of respondents who said it’s a good time to buy a house improved from July, rising 8 percent month-over-month. But while buying sentiment improved, it was balanced by a decline in the number of participants who said it’s a good time to sell. Survey respondents also said they think mortgage rates will fall over the next 12 months but were split over what will happen to home prices. Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s senior vice president and chief economist, says the change in price expectations was significant. “The share of consumers expecting home prices to go down over the next year increased substantially in August,” Duncan said. “We also observed a large decline in consumers reporting high home prices as the primary reason for it being a good time to sell a home, suggesting that expectations of slowing or declining home prices have begun to negatively affect selling sentiment.” (source)
