Fannie Mae Analysis Says Most Americans Want to Buy, But Will Rent for Now

• December 13th 2010

by Bryce Baschuk

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Though most Americans still aspire to own a home, many are more willing to rent for the time being, according to the results of Fannie Mae’s 2010 Own-Rent Analysis released late last week.

The analysis reported that, in the third quarter of 2010, 33 percent of Americans said they were more likely to rent their next home than buy, a 3 percent increase over January 2010; 59 percent of current renters surveyed said that they would likely continue renting after their current lease ends. Fannie Mae’s researchers believe that demographic factors such as fewer married couples, less families with children and financial concerns are reasons why people are finding renting more attractive.

“Despite Americans’ strong desire to own their homes, our study reveals that life events are greatly influencing families’ decision to rent,” Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae vice president and chief economist, said. “This trend, coupled with the housing crisis, has caused consumers to approach homeownership with greater caution and thoughtfulness.”

Among the reasons as to why renters said they would continue renting rather than buying a home included:

• Not having good enough credit for a mortgage (52 percent of renters)
• Not being able to afford the purchase or upkeep of a home (46 percent of renters)
• Thinking it’s not a good time economically to buy (43 percent of renters)

The analysis surveyed a group of respondents from DC about their thoughts on homeownership in the current housing market.

“There’s definitely I think a stigma attached [to renting] but I think it was more-so before [the crisis],” a young male from DC in his 20s said. “But in hindsight, you were actually smart [if you continued to rent] because you decided it wasn’t within your ability to pay for a house…people who went outside their means and bought a house are the ones who are suffering now.”

The analysis revealed that young Americans in particular were affected by the housing crisis. Homeownership for those in their mid to late twenties fell by 11 percent since 2009 compared with a decline of 5 percent among those aged 35 to 44.

For the survey, 2.041 telephone interviews were conducted in August/September 2010 plus 1,566 additional respondents from geographic areas of interest. To inform the survey design, focus groups were held in Washington, DC and Phoenix, AZ during July and August 2010.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/fannie_mae_analysis_says_most_americans_want_to_buy_but_will_rent_for_now/2758.