Owners, Renters Agree: Owning a Home is a Smart Decision

Owners, Renters Agree: Owning a Home is a Smart Decision

Washington, January 19, 2011

A substantial majority of both home owners and current renters agree that owning a home is a smart decision over the long term. That’s according to the results of a National Association of Realtors® survey of 3,793 adults conducted online by Harris Interactive.

The American Attitudes About Homeownership survey found that in today’s challenging economy, 95 percent of owners and 72 percent of renters believe that over a period of several years, it makes more sense to own a home. In addition, an overwhelming majority of home owners are happy with their decision to own a home – 93 percent of owners surveyed would buy again.

“Home owners and renters agree that home ownership benefits individuals and families, strengthens our communities, and is integral to our nation’s economy,” said National Association of Realtors® President Ron Phipps, broker-president of Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I. “The results of this survey illustrate just how important issues related to home ownership are to people in this country.”

The survey uncovered some differences between home owners and renters, as well. While more than half of owners are “very” or “extremely” satisfied with the overall quality of their family life, only one-third of renters report the same levels of satisfaction. Similarly, 43 percent of home owners are very/extremely satisfied with their community life, compared with 30 percent of renters.

A majority of renters – 63 percent – said that it was at least somewhat likely that they would purchase a home at some point in the future. Among this group, young adults (18-29 years old) have the strongest aspirations for home ownership; only 8 percent of young adults said that it was “not at all likely” that they would purchase a home at some point in the future.

In today’s market, many aspiring home owners are faced with worries about job security and creditworthiness. Among renters who are very or extremely likely to buy a home in the future, three out of five consider confidence in job security and creditworthiness to be an obstacle.

One point of agreement between renters and home owners was support of the mortgage interest deduction (MID). Seventy-four percent of owners and 62 percent of renters say it’s “extremely” or “very” important that the MID remain in place.

“At a time when the middle class is under increasing economic pressures, both home owners and renters agree that the mortgage interest deduction should not be targeted for change,” said Phipps. “Given strong public support of and aspirations toward owning a home, we need to keep policies in place that support and encourage responsible, sustainable home ownership for our future.”

This survey was conducted online within the U.S. and fielded October 6-20, 2010. A total of 3,793 adults, 18 and older were surveyed, including 1,880 home owners, 1,115 renters, and 798 young adults. All samples came from the Harris Poll online database and were weighted for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income to be representative of the U.S. general population of adults 18 and older. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online. Results are available online at www.realtor.org/statsanddata/homeownership/attitudes_homeown.

The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

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REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark which may be used only by real estate professionals who are members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics. Not all real estate agents are REALTORS®. All REALTORS® are members of NAR.

 

Information about NAR is available at www.realtor.org. This and other news releases are posted in the News Media section.

 

 

via realtor.org

This article released by the National Association of Realtors gives some good insight on the importance of home ownership as a long term investment in both your financial and family well being. A wide majority of people interviewed or surveyed agreed that the mortgage interest deduction was important to remain in place as a financial incentive to them currently or in the future. Our market in Bozeman has seen a busy first month of the year as first time home buyers, move up buyers and relocating families continue to close transactions.

Montana Wildlife - Rocky Mountain Elk by Jason Frey

Montana Wildlife - Rocky Mountain Elk

  Elk are by far one of the most abundant of the major mammal species in Montana with an estimated 30,000 elk that summer in Yellowstone National Park’s 2.2 million acres alone.

Elk are one of the larger members of the deer family and occupy all habitats from meadows up to the high mountain forests.  Elk have been known to travel in herds that have numbered several thousand head.  During the breeding season, which lasts from mid-September to mid-November, a bull may gather 20-30 cows into his harem, often clashing with other males for domination of the greater herd.  After the mating season, bulls will break off from the main herd and form bachelor groups, traveling together rather than competing for dominance.  The females (cows) and offspring (calves) travel together year round along with sub-adult males not of breeding age.

 Elk offer one of the most celebrated experiences that a wildlife enthusiast can be part of.  During the breeding season, bulls bugle to establish dominance, challenge other males and to locate females.  The bugle begins as a very guttural, low toned grunt and escalates to a high pitched whistle that lasts for several seconds.  The experience of sitting out on a crisp October day while the mountainside around you rings with bull elk challenging each other is truly a remarkable experience and one that will not soon be forgotten.  Even those who have spent their entire lifetimes around this animal are constantly reminded of the regality of nature when they hear the first bugles of fall.  

Elk can reach a mature weight of over 1000 pounds for larger males (avg. 700 lbs.) and up to 650 pounds for females (avg. 500 lbs.), bulls feed primarily to add bulk for mating season and put on stores for winter, cows on the other hand devote much of their caloric intake to gestation, birth, and care for their calves rather than body maintenance and growth.  Elk can reach heights of almost six feet at the point of the shoulder and be nearly eight feet long.  Elk coat colors vary from reddish-brown in the summer to a lighter tan in the winter months, calves are spotted during the first few months after being born, the bulls also possess a dark, chestnut colored neck and mane. 

Bulls grow a new set of antlers each year, possessing their “best” set in about their 11^th or 12^th year; the antlers can reach over five feet in length and weigh upwards of 35 pounds.  Mature bulls shed their antlers in February-March, while younger bulls can retain them until May.  The new antlers begin growing within days of shedding and will become covered in a layer of velvet until they have completed growing, usually around August.  Rocky Mountain Elk are the most abundant of the elk subspecies and number over 850,000 in North America.  They can have a life expectancy of upwards of twenty years, travel long distances at speeds close to thirty miles per hour and leap almost ten feet in the air.

 

All best,
______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

 

PureWest, Inc. 

jason.frey@purewestproperties.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonfreylifewideopen

www.PureWestProperties.com