Despite what experts say, 8 out of 10 Americans believe the housing crisis is going strong, and that maybe the worst is still to come, at least this is what a new survey conducted by Hart Research Associates and commissioned by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation indicates.
“While the desire to own a home remains a bedrock principle in American life, this survey demonstrates that the American public’s views about housing are changing, in part due to the hangover from the housing crisis, but importantly, also because of changes in our lifestyles,” said Peter D. Hart of Hart Research Associates.
65% of people who participated in the survey, believe the focus of national housing policy should be split equally between rental and ownership, instead of emphasizing one specifically. 70% of renters aspire to own a home some day but, 57% of surveyed participants believe that buying a home has become less appealing.
Homeownership has always been linked with the ‘American Dream,’ but now 3 in 5 adults believe that after the housing crisis, renters can be just as successful as homeowners at achieving this long aspired to dream.
“The emergence of this more balanced view that government support for rental housing and homeownership should be equalized is both surprising and significant,” Hart added. “The How Housing Matters survey underscores that it’s no longer renters versus owners, the haves versus the have-nots, or the young versus the old. There is a new and real acceptance of a more balanced approach to housing policy that puts renting and owning on a more equal footing.”
For the survey, Hart Research Associates interviewed 1,433 adults, of which about 63 percent were owners and 32 percent were renters.
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