Is the housing crisis behind us? According to a new survey commissioned by the MacArthur Foundation, the American public does not believe the crisis is history.
Nearly eight in 10 people (77%) surveyed believe that the U.S. is still in the middle of the crisis or that the worst is yet to come. Two-thirds of those surveyed (65%) now believe the focus of national housing policy should be split equally between rental and ownership, as opposed to promoting one over the other. Three in five adults (61%) now believe that renters can be just as successful as owners in achieving the American Dream.
‘The American public understands the benefits of decent, stable housing in people's lives – and the consequences for individuals and communities when that stability is lost through events like foreclosure, eviction, increasing costs or unemployment,’ says Julia M. Stasch, vice president of U.S. programs at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
The survey was produced for the MacArthur Foundation by Hart Research Associates, which conducted telephone interviews with 1,433 adults between Feb. 27 and March 10.
