Home buyers and sellers in the United States are positive about where the housing market would go by the end of 2014, according to the results of Prudential Real Estate's latest consumer outlook survey.
Prudential Real Estate interviewed 2,559 Americans, aged between 25 and 64 years, with an average household income of $50,000. Note that all the respondents were actively involved in the real estate market - either looking to buy or sell.
The survey saw 78 percent of the respondents saying the market's performance would draw to a strong close by the end of 2014. Millennials were the most optimistic group of all with 85 percent respondents from the cohort saying the end of 2014 will be good.
Eighty six percent of the total respondents thought that housing was moving in the right direction. About 70 percent of the participants said that the end of the year was a good time to buy or sell and 72 percent believed that there will be more supply of homes.
"Consumers may be shopping for more this holiday season and homes may likely be on their list. Our data shows people understand the opportunities in housing now and, because they feel better about their personal situations, many say they are ready to capitalize," Earl Lee, CEO of HSF Affiliates LLC, the parent company of Prudential Real Estate, said in a statement.
Check out the infographic below that highlights all the major points in the study.
A September survey conducted by Fannie Mae found Forty five percent of the people polled saying that prices will go up in the next 12 months. Only 8 percent thought prices would decrease. Fifty Five percent thought that rental prices would go up in the coming year.
Experts at Zillow believe that the American housing market recovery is on the right track.
"We're transitioning from a fast form of recovery to a slow form of recovery, particularly since a lot of those factors driving us forward - household formation rates and income growth - have not fully recovered," Stan Humphries, Zillow's chief economist, was quoted by US News.
Humphries added that the market is now tilting towards the buyers' favor.
"Sellers have had their day in the sun for several years in a row now. It's time to get back to a balanced market and for buyers to have their day," he said.
