More than seven years after the collapse of the housing bubble, American confidence in housing has been rising fitfully, according to Fannie Mae, the national home lender.
Things aren’t back to normal, and a “pause” in sales is likely this year, although responses to a June survey show a generally upward trend in consumer outlook, according to the national home lender.
“Despite recent improvement, we now expect an annual decline in existing home sales,” said Doug Duncan, chief economist at Fannie Mae.
This year’s market continues to suffer from the expectation of higher mortgage rates and a shortage of low-end homes for sale, he said.
However, the prognosis is positive, Duncan said: The fundamentals behind the market are growing more solid: fewer consumers are worried about losing their jobs. “This may encourage potential homebuyers to enter the purchase market in 2014, helping to offset some of the weakness in sales activity.”
The imbalance in the market is reflected in the survey: About 70 percent said it is a good time to buy a house. About 40 percent said it is a good time to sell.
About 1,000 people were polled as part of the monthly survey.
The share of people saying the economy is on the wrong track slipped to 54 percent, down slightly from the month before.
The share of people expecting their own financial situation to improve was up a little, hitting 43 percent.
On the downside, about 11 percent of those taking part said their household income was significantly lower than a year ago. Roughly 38 percent of those answering said their expenses are higher than a year ago.
Fannie Mae was founded during the Great Depression by the federal government, eventually becoming a stand-alone entity. Publicly traded for decades, Fannie Mae was badly damaged by the housing crisis. Since 2008, it has been under the conservatorship of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
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