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Home Purchase Sentiment Index is up, Small Business Optimism fell in September, US Foreclosure rate at low

October 10, 2017

Fannie Mae reported its September Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) on Monday revealing overall housing confidence is up on rising renter optimism. The Fannie Mae HPSI increased 0.3 points in September to 88.3, matching the all-time high set in June. Americans who feel that it is a good time to buy a home rose last month. Renter respondents also showed increased optimism on purchasing a home. “The biggest driver for the increase in the HPSI is the rebound in the good time to buy sentiment, which outweighed the largest drag—a sizable reduction in the net share of consumers expecting home prices to rise over the next year,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae.

The NFIB Index of Small Business Optimism fell in September from 105.3 to 103.0, led by a big drop in sales expectations, not just in the storm-affected states, but across the nation. Within the report it showed that the number of small business owners who expected better sales plunged a net 12 points last month. Owners who think that it’s a good time to expand dropped a net 10 points. The NFIB says that the index remains very high by historical standards.

Analytics firm CoreLogic reports that the U.S. foreclosure rate remained at a 10-year low in July as the housing market continues to improve. The report showed that in July 2017, 4.6% of mortgages were delinquent by at least 30 days or more including those in foreclosure. That is below the 5.5% rate in July 2016. In addition, as of July 2017, the foreclosure inventory rate was 0.7% lower from 0.9% in July 2016.