Americans now have mortgage confidence

By Sari R. Updated on 12/10/2012

The housing slump may have inhibited possible homebuyers from receiving mortgages, but a new Fannie Mae National Housing Survey shows that there is finally starting to be improvement on this front.

In November 2012, a little over half of the survey’s respondents claimed that it was now easier to get a mortgage than ever in the past.  This indicates that tight lending standards may be loosening so that more credit access is granted.  Around 14% of individuals think that home prices will rise within the next year.  A fourth of survey respondents believed that right now was a good time to sell a home.  These results mark the highest ratings that the survey has ever seen in the past year following its conception.  67% of individuals responded that they would buy a home if they had to move within the next few years.

Overall, the consensus of the survey was that attitudes towards housing are dramatically improving.  44% of Americans think that the economy is heading in the right direction; only 50% of Americans think that it’s heading in the wrong direction.  The 50% statistic represents a decline of 25% over the past year.  The number of individuals who predict a jump in mortgage rates rose by 4% to 41%.  18% of respondents also believe that while the overall financial situation will remain stable, they believe their personal financial situations are worsening.

For today's lowest rates, please click here.