Record Low Confidence in U.S. Housing Market for Buyers

Only 21% of US adults believe it is a good time to buy a house, the lowest in Gallup's trend since 1978. The decline in optimism about the housing market is uniform across most subgroups of Americans, likely reflecting high prices and interest rates that make mortgage payments less affordable. However, Americans still regard real estate as the best long-term investment over stocks, gold, and other options. Fewer Americans expect local home prices to increase in the coming year, with 56% holding this view, while 25% believe prices will stay the same and 19% think they will decrease.