Fewer people are being kept out of the housing market because of the economic climate, according to a national survey by ""FindLaw.com"":http://www.findlaw.com/, a legal information website.
[IMAGE]According to the survey, the number of people who say the current economic situation makes them more likely to buy a house increased three percentage points to 11 percent.
Meanwhile, 30 percent of Americans say they are less likely to buy a house because of the state of the economy. In 2010, that percentage was more than double--63 percent.
""Two years ago, the economic situation was driving a lot of potential homebuyers to the sidelines,"" said Stephanie Rahlfs, an attorney and editor with FindLaw.com.
[COLUMN_BREAK]""But today we're finding that the state of the economy is becoming less of a factor in keeping people out of the housing market,"" she added.
Forty-nine percent of respondents said the economy hasn't made them more or less likely to purchase a home. For those people, the state of the overall economy might be a secondary concern when it comes to buying a house.
""Many factors influence housing decisions, including income, housing prices, proximity to work, job relocations, mortgage rates, ability to sell an existing home, school, and so on,"" Rahlfs said. ""But it's clear that people's outlook on the economy is now becoming less of a drag on the housing market.""
The survey, which was conducted using a demographically balanced group of 1,000 American adults, also found that confidence is on the rise in the middle and upper income brackets.
""[A]mong middle and upper income levels, we're seeing a significant rise in people saying the current economy is making them more likely to enter the housing market,"" Rahlfs said. ""This may be due to some combination of historically low mortgage rates, housing prices that--although rebounding--are still relatively low, and people perhaps feeling more optimistic about the economy in general.""