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Survey: Less than Half of Americans Think Homeownership is Attainable

Survey results released by ""COUNTRY Financial"":http://www.countryfinancial.com/ show less than half of Americans believe homeownership is an attainable goal for middle-income families.

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According to new COUNTRY Financial Security Index survey, a vast majority--88 percent--of respondents think owning their home is important. However, only 45 percent say they think homeownership is feasible for middle-income households.

In addition, less than half--43 percent--of people surveyed feel buying a home is the best investment a family can make.

Sentiment about homeownership varied across generations. Among younger respondents (age 18-29), only 37 percent said buying a home is the best investment for a family compared to 51 percent among Americans age 65 or older.

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Meanwhile, 49 percent of the youngest group think owning a home is attainable for the average middle-income family, while only 36 percent of the senior group agree.

""Home ownership is important for Americans, but the market's slow recovery might be causing them to doubt its value,"" said Joe Buhrmann, manager of financial security support at COUNTRY. ""However, Americans are confident about future home values.""

Americans do seem to be optimistic about the housing market, even if they can't necessarily participate in it. The survey showed 71 percent expect home values to go up or stay the same over the next five years.

Part of the pessimism regarding respondents' ability to purchase a home may stem from concerns about their savings and the job market. According to the survey, 65 percent of consumers say they wouldn't be able to make mortgage payments after nine months if they lost their job. While that percentage is down from 2011, the nine-month threshold is shorter than the current average unemployment of length of nearly 10 months (calculated by the ""Bureau of Labor Statistics"":http://www.bls.gov/).

As expected, high-income earners say they can maintain their mortgage payments for longer than middle-to-low-income groups in the event of job loss. However, 65 percent of those earning $75,000 to $100,000 could not pay their mortgage beyond the average unemployment length. Even among those earning more than $100,000 a year, 51 percent would not be able to make it beyond the average unemployment length.

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