Source: New York Post —
Consumer confidence in the US housing market approached an all-time low in February as buyers and sellers contend with a fresh spike in mortgage rates and mounting anxiety about job security.
Fannie Mae’s monthly Home Purchase Sentiment Index fell 3.6 points to 58.0 in February, sinking close to a record low established last October when the average mortgage rate briefly topped 7%.
The index has plunged by 17.3 points compared with the same month one year ago.
The survey has been conducted since 2011.
“The decline was partly driven by a substantial decrease in consumers’ sense of home-selling conditions, with most respondents who indicated it’s a ‘bad time to sell’ citing unfavorable economic conditions and mortgage rates as the primary reasons for that belief,” Fannie Mae chief economist Doug Duncan said in a release.
The percentage of homebuyers who felt it was a bad time to sell their homes increased to 44% in February, up from 39% the previous month.
