Renters’ Home-buying Sentiment Turns Negative

 

The latest update to the Pulsenomics Transaction Sentiment Index (TSI) shows that home-buying sentiment nationwide is continuing its multi-year downward trend.

TSI is the only measure of its kind that scores and tracks home-buying and home-selling mindsets by tenure category and metro market. It shows that among renter households, buying sentiment has fallen further into negative territory while selling sentiment among homeowners remains near its five-year high (TSI scale is -100 to +100).[1]


The trajectory and paths of the nationwide measures (above) mask significant attitudinal variations across and within individual metropolitan area housing markets. The differences underscore the merit of monitoring transaction sentiment data through lenses focused on individual metro areas and tenure categories (see examples below). These higher-resolution indicators provide unique insight regarding prevailing market conditions, and thus, can inform forecasts of home inventory, sales volume, and prices.


[1] The most recent edition of the Transaction Sentiment Index (TSI) reflects Q3 2018 data. TSI is calculated by Pulsenomics with response data compiled in the biannual U.S. Housing Confidence Survey. The Composite 20 TSI is derived from an aggregate sample of 10,000 heads of household (500 in each of 20 of the largest metro areas in the country); the U.S. TSI is based upon a separate nationwide sample frame (n=3,000).