Housing markets

The share of residential property buyers that put themselves in the most optimistic category jumped notably in the latest edition of an RCN survey.

Public policy experts debated the effect of rising rates on the mortgage market, the impact on homebuyers and ways that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could exit conservatorship at the National Mortgage News Digital Mortgage Conference.

Even as Freddie Mac's survey put rates at their highest since December 2000, factors like rising oil prices and a government shutdown could slow the economy.

High mortgage rates and the lack of inventory for sale pushed the sector into a downturn twice recently - between May and November last year and in May of 2023 - according to First American

While the share is slightly lower than at the start of 2023, the market is not expected to slip back to lower pre-pandemic levels, CoreLogic said.

A shortage of listings has pushed up prices, boosting the total value of US homes to a record $47 trillion, Redfin reported. 

Renovations, already the leading use for these borrowings, increased their share to nearly two-thirds of the products' market, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Ten Western states that benefited from a pandemic-driven boom reported value declines in May, CoreLogic said.

Researchers at the government-sponsored enterprise also maintained their outlook for a modest recession but moved anticipated onset to the fourth quarter this year.

A larger share of sellers were optimistic in May, but the percentage of enthusiastic buyers fell, according to Fannie Mae's Home Purchase Sentiment Index.