The share of would-be Metro Atlanta home buyers who think now is a good time to buy a Metro Atlanta home officially plummeted to an all-time low in August, according to a new housing industry report.
Fannie Mae's August National Housing Survey results found this to be the second consecutive month it has fallen, dropping six percentage points since June to 64% and tying the all-time survey low.
Fannie Mae's recent numbers lend support to a forecast that 2015 won't be all that hot either, as more and more potential Metro Atlanta home buyers are losing interest in buying in the current economic conditions.
The current attitudes about the home buying environment reflects a shift away from record home buying affordability without enough consumer personal financial sentiment to compensate for it.
Not All Bad News for Metro Atlanta Home Buyers
The Fannie Mae survey found some sectors of the mortgage production universe are seeing significant growth. And Americans' attitude toward the future of the Metro Atlanta housing market is getting more positive, suggesting that housing activity could resume its modest recovery in 2015 after some pullback in 2014.
While prospective Metro Atlanta home buyers certainly wouldn't mind if home prices came back down, it could be rough for the Metro Atlanta economic recovery. Because homes have regained so much of their lost value, many Metro Atlanta home buyers once again have positive equity in their homes. And if prices were to decline, many homeowners could once again find themselves underwater, which would be a very bad thing.
The share of people who said they would buy if they were going to move fell to 64%, while the share of people who would rent increased to 32% — the narrowest gap in more than a year.
We'll continue to keep a sharp eye on trends that may affect Metro Atlanta home buyers, and report any and all trends in future updates here on our website. In the meantime, find more current real estate news articles under our Atlanta Real Estate News section under Atlanta Real Estate Categories to your right.