Nearly 80% of Americans Believe It’s a Bad Time To Buy a Home Amid High Mortgage Rates: Fannie Mae

Nearly 80% of Americans said they think it is a bad time to buy a home amid soaring mortgage rates and increasing home prices, according to Fannie Mae. 

The government-backed mortgage lender on Tuesday published a Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) where it gauged homebuying and selling confidence. 79% of Americans surveyed by Fannie Mae said they believe it's a bad time to buy a home, only 20% said otherwise. 

In comparison, 23% of Americans surveyed in the same period last year said they believe it's a good time to buy a home. 

What Is the Home Selling Sentiment?

In addition to homebuying, Fannie Mae surveyed Americans whether they think it's the best time to sell a home. At least 67% of respondents said they believe now is a good time to list while 32% said now is a bad time to sell. The figure marks a 3% increase in favorability from last month. 

Apart from homebuying and selling, the survey asked respondents what they expect to happen to the housing market over the next 12 months. 

On home prices, 42% of respondents expect houses to be more expensive in the next year, compared to 40% last month. Only 18% said they expect home prices to fall, down from 20% who had the same thought in March. 

On mortgage rates, 33% said they believe the rates will increase within the next 12 months, compared to the 26% who said mortgage rates may go down. In comparison, at the beginning of the year, 36% expected mortgage rates to fall.

"Overall, housing sentiment increased from November through February, driven largely by consumer belief that mortgage rates would move lower. However, recent data showing stickier-than-expected inflation, rising mortgage rates, and continued home price appreciation appear to have given consumers pause regarding the market's direction," Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae senior vice president and chief economist, said in the report. 

"For potential homebuyers in less of a rush to transact, ongoing affordability challenges may continue to keep many of them on the sidelines - one reason why we expect home sales to tick up only gradually over the course of the year," he continued.

Currently, mortgage rates are hovering around the 7% range for a 30-year loan. The median home sale price is $420,321, according to Redfin.

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