Many still believe buying a home is smart decision

Although the economy has put a damper on the buying and selling of homes, it hasn’t changed the fact that most people still believe buying a home is a wise financial decision.

That’s according to nearly eight out of 10 respondents to the 2010 National Housing Pulse Survey, which the National Association of Realtors released in October, reports the NAR’s Realty Times.

The survey measures how affordable housing issues affect consumers. Despite the unstable economy, 68 percent of those surveyed believe now is a good time to buy a home – down from 75 percent last year but up from 66 percent in 2008 and 59 percent in 2007.

According to the Realty Times, more than 25 percent of renters are “thinking more about buying a home than they were a year ago,” perhaps because of lower home prices and record-low mortgage interest rates. And 63 percent of renters responding to the survey said that owning a home is a future priority and nearly 40 percent said it was one of their top priorities. Lower home costs resulted in only 57 percent of renters reporting fear that they could never buy a home because of affordability, compared with 63 percent in 2007.

However, 79 percent of respondents still consider having enough money for a down payment and closing costs to be among of the biggest obstacles to buying a home. Another obstacle is a lack of confidence in their ability to be approved for a loan, reported by 73 percent of respondents, the Realty Times said.