Twenty-one percent of U.S. adults believe it is a good time to buy a house, down nine percentage points from the prior low recorded last year. The 2022 and 2023 readings are the only times that less than half of Americans have perceived the housing market as being good for buyers in Gallup’s trend since 1978.

The latest results are from Gallup’s annual Economy and Personal Finance poll, conducted April 3-25. Seventy-eight percent currently say it is a bad time to buy a house.

Gallup first asked Americans about their perceptions of the housing market in 1978, when 53% thought it was a good time to buy a house. Thirteen years later, when the question was asked again, 67% held that view. The record high of 81% was recorded in 2003, at a time of growing homeownership rates and housing prices.

[It’s objectively not a good time to buy, not with interest rates probably peaking out in the next few months. It’s also not a great time to sell, unless it’s to sell excess inventory — and even then, the market is slowing down in many areas. Of course, if you’re buying cash, it’s never a *bad* time to buy, but otherwise, the volatility in mortgage rates is going to make everyone nervous for a while. — Ed]