RISMedia

NAR: Homebuyers Optimistic, but Economy Gives Pause

By RISMedia Staff

Sixty-three percent of Americans are confident in their home-buying prospects today, but just 34 percent favor it "strongly," a dip from earlier this year, according to the National Association of REALTORS® Housing Opportunities and Market Experience (HOME) Survey, new for Q3 2019.
 
A determining factor? Income. Of Americans earning less than $50,000, 54 percent favor home-buying today, according to the survey—however, as incomes rise, so does positive sentiment. Among $50,000-$100,000 earners, 65 percent believe now is a good time to buy, and for $100,000 earners, that figure leaps to 72 percent.
 
The correlation prevailed for sellers, too. Of $100,000-earning households, 82 percent believe now is a good time to sell, compared to 64 percent in the under-$50,000 group.
 
"Not surprisingly, as incomes increase, the process of buying a home is less of a strain," Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR, says. "This has always been the case, but in this third quarter survey, we see it to an even greater extent—high earners are more open to buying a home."
 
Overall, the economy is positively progressing, according to 52 percent of respondents to the survey; however, 51 percent of millennials believe the opposite. The most optimistic? The Silent Generation, at 54 percent, who also have the highest housing market optimism, at 75 percent.
 
"Mortgage rates are at historically low levels, so I see no sign of the optimism about home-buying fading," says Yun. "However, the fact that slightly fewer are expressing strong intensity compared to recent prior quarters is implying some would-be buyers have concerns about the direction of the economy."
 
For more information, please visit www.nar.realtor.
 
Suzanne De Vita is RISMedia's online news editor. Email her your real estate news ideas at sdevita@rismedia.com.

 


Today's Top Stories
Existing-Home Sales Move Higher
State of the Market: A Mid-year Snapshot
Spotlight: The World's First Complete Real Estate System: Sellstate Realty
Justin Timberlake's NSYNC Era Estate Switches Hands
Where's Housing Headed? A Google City, Maybe
This New Twitter Change Will Boost Your Media-Savvy Efforts
RELO Direct Welcomes New SVP of Sales and Marketing
Engel & V lkers Officially Launches Richmond Brokerage with Grand Opening Event
Alameda County's Better Homes Realty Premier Affiliates with Century 21 Real Estate LLC
5 Secret Strategies to WOW the Seller and Win the Listing Every Time
Brought to you by Real Estate News © Copyright 2025, All Rights Reserved.