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14 | M R EP O RT FEATURE COVER STORY SPECIAL REPORT: COVID-19 Survey Says 59% of Buyers Are Delaying Home Purchases Prospective homebuyers thinking twice about making the plunge. A new survey by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) revealed that the majority of Realtors believe buyers and sell- ers will return to the market at the conclusion of the COVID-19 pandemic. NAR states that nearly six of 10 members (59%) said buyers are delaying home purchases for a couple of months. Fifty-seven per- cent said sellers are delaying home sales for a couple of months. "Home sales will decline this spring season because of unique economic and social consequences resulting from the coronavirus outbreak, but much of the activ- ity looks to reappear later in the year," NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said. "Home prices will remain stable because of a pandemic-induced reduction in inventory coupled with less immediate concerns over foreclo- sures." Fannie Mae's latest Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) dropped 11.7 points in March to 80.8—the lowest reading since December 2016. Five of the six HPSI compo- nents declined month-over-month, including the number of consum- ers concerned about losing their job over the next year. Fannie Mae says consumers also reported homebuying and selling condi- tions have worsened, and they have a "more pessimistic" view of home-price growth. The HPSI is down 9 points year-over-year. Doug Duncan, SVP and Chief Economist at Fannie Mae, said attitudes about the current home- selling environment have "dete- riorated" and have fallen to their lowest level since January 2017. The NAR survey also found that due to COVID-19, 90% of NAR members said buyers' inter- est declined and 80% of members cited a decline in the number of homes on the market. Also, 72% of members said sellers have not reduced prices to attract buyers and six in 10 mem- bers said buyers are expecting a decline in home prices as buyers "senseless competition in the cur- rent environment." The survey also found that technology is playing a vital role as the real estate industry adapts to the current social distancing directives. "Members said the most common technology tools used to interact with clients are e- signatures, social media, messag- ing apps, and virtual tours," the survey said.