The Fannie Mae National Housing Survey: “home Is Safest Investment “

By Author: Bruce Wills
Total Articles: 52
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The Fannie Mae National Housing Survey: Home is safest investment

A survey was conducted by Fannie Mae during the months Dec 2009 - Jan 2010 and 3,451 telephone interviews were conducted of Americans in various age groups i.e. 18 years and above. 887 of the respondents were homeowners, 1,100 were mortgage buyers, 908 were renters and 338 were underwater borrowers. The survey indicated that homeownership is still considered to be a safest investment in U.S. The survey highlighted household finances, housing finance system, confidence in homes as investments and overall confidence in economy.

The survey found that despite the previous year's downturn, U.S. investors still consider homeownership as a good financial investment option. The president and CEO of Fannie Mae, Mike Williams said, Many Americans believe homeownership is more than just financial investment.

The survey highlights Americans renters and homeowners are more cautious buyers than they were before downturn and Americans paying fixed rate mortgages are more satisfied than other mortgage types because the payment is predictable.

The ...
... VP and Chief Economist at Fannie Mae, Doug Duncan said Buyers still want to own houses but there is an increased cautiousness in every aspect of home buying and renting.

The consumers believed that owning a house is now tough as compared to the previous years, and the condition may get further difficult for future buyers. The Vice President of Fannie Mae, Doug Duncan said Consumers are rebalancing their attitude on mortgages and are focusing on long term effect and risks of homeownership. He said, Sustainable housing is good for economy, housing market and also for the families owning the houses.

There are many illustrations in the survey about the attitude of buyers towards housing and homeownership, renting, borrowing, mortgage, and the impact of being the underwater borrower. The survey also compares the findings to the 2003 study on housing.

Key points of the survey

1. 80% believed homeownership was important for economy.
2. 31% felt economy is on track and 44% believed their personal finances will improve in the coming year. 63% of delinquent borrowers believed their financial position will be strong in the next year.
3. About 64% of the respondents felt this was the good time to buy homes and 31% believed it is a very good time to buy a house. The number of respondents matches the number in 2003 when housing market was booming.
4. About 73% believed that housing prices will be up or same in the next year. About 37 % believed the prices will increase.

Homeownership survey

1. The survey showed that 70% of the respondents believed the safest investment is in homes. 74% believed putting money in bank was safe and 17% felt an investment in stock market was safe.
2. 65 % preferred homes for owning as compared to renting.
3. Buyers with fixed mortgage rates are more satisfied and it constitutes 93% of the mortgage holder. 76% of the mortgages were hybrid ARMs and 68% were with ARMs.
Renters' survey

1. 79% of the renters believed renting had been positive for them.
2. The common reasons for renting are poor credit history and maintenance of home.
3. 67% of the renters believed they will buy home at some point in their life.
4. 44% of the people living on rent said they will buy a house if they have to move.
5. 23% of the renters said they buy homes later than planned and the reasons for delays are mostly non-financial such as schools and safety. 43% delayed the plan to own a home due to safety reasons and 33% had considerations such as local schools.

Homeownership is a safe investment and many tenants prefer to own the house they occupy. Mayfair group provides cheap foreclosure properties to buyers which can fetch easy rentals. Mayfair offers properties in Detroit, which can be bought at half the market price and it is managed by the local partners of the group .

The firm provides asset management feature and helps the investors to get reliable tenant. The investors can give the house for rent-to-own or sell the property at market price, as the price improves.

Mayfair Group. Reg. No. 6609354.Registered in England. Registered Office: Berkeley Square House, 2nd Floor, Berkeley Square, Mayfair, London,W1J 6BD, United Kingdom, www.mayfair-group.com

For more information log on to Detroit Property Investment, Mayfair Group or email info@mayfair-group.com