Despite the battering that home prices have taken in recent years, most Americans remain upbeat about the housing sector.
Seventy-eight percent of Americans identified as likely to vote in the 2012 presidential election said that owning their own home was one of the most important things in their lives, according to the survey by Lake Research Partners conducted for the National Association of Home Builders, MarketWatch reports.
"People told us that homeownership is more than just bricks and mortar, more than just having a big mortgage. It’s about family. It’s still part of the American dream," says Alex Batty, a partner with Public Opinion Strategies who analyzed the results, MarketWatch adds.
A third of those polled said housing was among the best investments out there, ignoring the 30 percent drop in home prices nationally since the peak of the housing boom in 2006.
The top investments were retirement accounts like an IRA or a 401(k).
Other surveys show similar views on housing.
HomeGain, which provides free instant home valuations online, says its 2012 Home Ownership Satisfaction Survey shows that 72 percent of surveyed homeowners indicated that they were satisfied with owning a home, and 28 percent said they were dissatisfied.
When asked if price appreciation was the primary reason for their satisfaction, 24 percent agreed although 76 percent listed other reasons, with the most cited responses including pride of ownership.
"The HomeGain 2012 National Home Ownership Satisfaction survey shows in spite of declines in the values of homes nationwide, satisfaction among homeowners remains high at 72 percent, with nearly three of four homeowners satisfied with home ownership," Louis Cammarosano, HomeGain's general manager, says in a statement.
"Of the 28 percent of surveyed homeowners who indicated they were unsatisfied, 63 percent cited price depreciation as the primary reason."
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