Largest mortgage financier: The great home recovery reversal | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Housing has peaked and 2014 will show a slowdown from the amount of housing activity in 2013, Fannie Mae’s May 2014 National Housing Survey shows.
Respondents to the annual survey say that economic concerns and stagnant household income are dragging down housing. The results show that in the space of just one month, attitudes toward housing can shift dramatically.
The share of 1,000 respondents who still believe the economy is headed in the wrong direction remained at 57% last month, and those who said their household income is significantly higher than it was at the same time last year decreased four percentage points to 21%.
Housing activity in 2014 has been well below typical seasonal trends.
“Consumers’ lukewarm income expectations and reticence about the economy seem to be holding back housing demand,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “This year’s spring and summer home buying season has gotten off to a slow start, even as mortgage rates have trended lower over the past two months.”
He added that while recent housing activity suggests that the worst of the housing slump may be behind America, this caution among consumers means sales this year will likely be too weak to pull sales for all of 2014 ahead of last year.
The survey findings track with real world indicators that support the conclusions by Fannie Mae: The housing market has serious cracks in the foundation – existing home sales have stalled out, pending home sales have plunged, price increases have slowed, and construction is slowing.
It's a 180 degree turn from the last National Housing Survey, which was considerably more positive.




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http://www.housingwire.com/articles/30253-largest-mortgage-financier-the-great-home-recovery-reversal