Home Purchase Sentiment Index Increases to 83.7 in April

Consumer Confidence in Home Selling Market Picks Up, but Overall Housing Sentiment Remains Flat

Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index™ (HPSI) increased 3.5 points to 83.7 in April, bouncing back from an 18-month low in March, yet overall consumer housing sentiment has remained generally flat. The HPSI Good Time to Sell component approached an all-time survey high in April, posting the largest increase among the six HPSI components. The net share of consumers who think now is a good time to sell a home rose 16 percentage points. However, the Good Time to Buy component dipped to an all-time survey low, creating the narrowest gap on record between these two measures. In addition, although the net share of consumers reporting confidence about not losing their job rose 6 percentage points, the net share of consumers reporting that their income was significantly higher than it was 12 months ago stayed flat from the prior month.

“We can partially attribute the sizable gain in April in home selling optimism both to a correction for last month’s unexpected dip and to typical seasonal strength in housing activity in the spring and summer,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Even after accounting for these factors, continued tight housing supply has led to renewed strength in home price appreciation, making selling a home a more attractive prospect this year in particular. This improved sentiment could provide an extra boost of much-needed supply for the spring selling season.”

On this webpage you will find a news release with highlights from the HPSI and NHS results, the latest Data Release highlighting the consumer attitudinal indicators, month-over-month key indicator data, an overview and white paper about the HPSI, technical notes providing in-depth information about the NHS methodology, the questionnaire used for the survey, and a comparative assessment of Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey and other consumer surveys.

Downloads and Related Links