By Saeed Azhar

NEW YORK, May 28 (Reuters) - U.S. homeowners and prospective buyers are feeling the most uncertain about the real estate market since 2023, a Bank of America survey showed on Wednesday, as rising mortgage rates deter buyers.

Of the 2,000 respondents to BofA's poll, 60% said they could not tell whether it was a good time to buy a home, according to a report published by the nation's second largest lender. That is up from 57% last year and 48% in 2023.

Volatile interest rates and elevated home prices have fueled uncertainty, prompting consumers to slow house purchases during the spring season, when activity typically picks up, Matt Vernon, head of consumer lending at Bank of America, told Reuters.

"We're certainly off to a slower start, from a spring season perspective, than we've historically seen," he said.

The sluggish start to a spring season contrasts with the first quarter, when BofA saw an 80% jump in mortgage applications as buyers were tempted by increasing home inventory and lower long-term bond yields.

Mortgage rates USMG=ECI have increased alongside the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note. Volatility in rates has been driven by concerns over the Trump administration's economic policies, including tariffs, and the nation's deteriorating fiscal outlook.

Still, the survey showed 52% of prospective home buyers felt the market was better now than it was a year ago. Three out of four expected home prices and interest rates to fall and are waiting until then to buy a new home, up from 62% in 2023.

"This continued rate period in the 6% to 7% range is now becoming a new normal," said Vernon. "They are looking to be opportunistic for rates and prices to come down."

(Reporting by Saeed Azhar, editing by Lananh Nguyen and Sandra Maler)

((Saeed.Azhar@thomsonreuters.com; +1 347 908-6341; Reuters Messaging: saeed.azhar.reuters.com@reuters.net))