Prudential Real Estate Outlook Survey (2nd Quarter 2012)

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PRUDENTIAL REAL ESTATE OUTLOOK SURVEY2ND QUARTER

July 11, 2012

Global Communications

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Survey BackgroundObjective:

§Gather insight on the factors impacting buyer/seller real estate decisions in today’s economy.

Audiences:

§Respondents are aged 25-64 with a household income of at least $50,000, and either recently bought/sold a home or are considering buying/selling a home.

§Similar studies were conducted in February 2011 and Q1 2012 and are used as a benchmark periodically throughout this report.

Total Respondents: 1,250

§Targeted sample of Americans “in the market” for buying or selling a home– 500 “Recent Transactors” – Bought/sold home within the last year– 500 “Likely Transactors” – Indicated they are likely to buy/sell home within next year

– 250 “Contemplators” – Considered buying/selling within last year, but did not

§The margin of error is ± 2.8% for all respondents and higher for subgroups.

Methodology:

§Interviews were conducted online by Penn Schoen Berland, between May 22 and June 1, 2012.

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Key Findings§ Confidence is rising in homeownership and the recovery of the U.S. real estate market

– 69% believe that real estate is a good investment despite the market volatility of the past few years, up 6 percentage points from the first-quarter 2012 survey and 17 percentage points from the first-quarter 2011 survey.

– 72% expressed confidence that the real estate market and property values will improve during the next two years, including a 6-point jump among those “very confident” or “confident” vs. the first quarter 2012, and a 14-point gain in this subset over the first quarter 2011.

§ The Recession has not deterred Americans from the goal of homeownership– Nearly two-thirds (64%) of respondents have a favorable perception of the U.S. housing market, up from 60% in the first quarter

2012 and 52% in first quarter 2011. However, Americans are more cautious than before – 30% strongly agree that the housing crisis reminded them they have to be more careful about buying or selling a home.

– Owning a home is still very important to 78% of respondents, unchanged from the first-quarter 2011 survey.

§ Belief that now is a good time to buy remains high– With interest rates at historically low levels, 96% of respondents at least “somewhat agree” that now is a great time to buy a

home. That’s unchanged from the first-quarter 2012 survey.

§ Emotional reasons outweigh financial reasons for owning a home– Survey respondents emphasized “control of living space,” “more space for family,” “safer neighborhood,” and “good place to

raise a family” before “a good investment,” “financial security” and “tax benefits.”

§ Caution remains– 30% of respondents “strongly agree” that the housing crisis reminds them to be more careful about buying or selling a home, up

2 points from the first-quarter 2012 survey.– 65% of respondents said that securing a mortgage is more challenging that it ever was before the market crisis, a 7-point jump

from the first quarter 2012. – Among those considering a real estate transaction, 39% expressed concern about selling their home, an 11-point increase from

the first-quarter 2012 survey and 10 points higher than first quarter 2011.

§ Importance of Real Estate Agents– Nearly three-quarters of respondents (74%) said it’s more important than every to work with a good real estate agent for best

success in buying or selling a home, up from 71% in the first quarter 2012 survey and from 67% in first quarter 2011.

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Confidence in rising in real estate’s recovery

§ Confidence increased among all audiences; Recent Transactors are the most confident in the recovery

All Recent Transactor Likely Transactor Contemplator

Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011

Very confident 16 11 5 23 16 6 16 10 5 2 2 4

Confident 23 22 20 25 25 20 26 24 23 16 10 13

Somewhat confident 33 37 43 26 31 41 37 36 43 39 52 45

Not very confident 21 24 27 19 21 27 17 24 24 35 31 34

Not at all confident 6 6 5 6 7 6 5 5 5 9 5 4

Considering the U.S. economy’s ongoing recovery from the "Great Recession," how confident do you feel that the real estate market and property values will at

least begin to recover in the next year or two?

All

Recent Transactor

Likely Transactor

Contemplator

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Optimism is returning to the real estate market

§ Favorability is up 12 points from 2011, and 4 points from Q1


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 2011

Favorable 24 20 14 33 31 16 24 17 14 4 17 9

Somewhat favorable 40 40 38 36 40 41 44 39 39 38 39 32

Somewhat unfavorable 28 29 33 26 21 28 24 30 32 41 30 46

Unfavorable 9 11 15 5 8 15 8 13 15 18 13 14

Based on your personal experience and/or what you know about the process of buying and selling homes,

what is your overall perception of the residential

real estate market in the United States?

All

Recent Transactor

Likely Transactor

Contemplator

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Real estate is still considered a good investment§ Despite market volatility of previous years, 69% believe real estate is a good investment, up

sharply from Q1 and from 2011

§ Roughly 3 in 4 recognize the importance of working with a good real estate agent when buying or selling a home, a steady increase from the previous two surveys

§ Financing a home remains a concern among respondents

Please indicate your level of agreement or disagreement with the following statements.IF RECENT/LIKELY TRANSACTORShowing % Strongly Agree / Agree

All Recent Transactors Likely Transactors

Q2 2012

Q1 2012

2011Q2

2012Q1

20122011

Q2 2012

Q1 2012

2011

Given the dynamics and challenges of today’s real estate market, I think it is more important than ever to work with a good realtor for the best success in buying or selling a home

74 71 67 75 71 70 71 73 64

Even though my house is worth less, I know I can also buy a new house at a lower price

67 64 64 67 63 -- 66 66 65

I think real estate is a good investment despite the market volatility of the past few years

69 63 52 72 63 52 65 61 53

Financing/getting a mortgage is more challenging than it ever was before the market crisis

65 58 61 67 56 62 63 60 60

Rationally, I understand housing prices are down and by historical standards this might be a good time to buy real estate, but my emotions and concerns hold me back from buying or selling a home

43 36 -- 42 39 -- 44 33 --

I regret not selling my home in the past year 19 16 12 -- -- -- 19 16 12

I regret selling my home in the past year 20 13 10 20 13 10 -- -- --

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Owning a home remains very important

§ Owning a home is still “very important” to nearly 4 in 5 respondents

How important is owning a home to you?

How important is owning a home to you?


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

Very Important 78 78 81 82 78 78 70 68

Somewhat Important 20 19 17 16 19 19 26 27

Not very important 2 2 1 2 2 3 4 2

Not at all important 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 2

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Reasons for homeownership favor the emotional side§ Safety, control and family continue to be more important than financial considerations

When thinking about the reasons you might own a home, how important are each of the following?Showing % Very Important


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

It allows me to have more control over my living space

70 69 69 66 73 73 65 66

It allows me to have more space for my family

62 63 60 60 67 67 55 60

It allows me to live in a safer neighborhood where people look after each other

61 61 61 62 63 60 57 57

It gives me a good place to raise a family 59 59 58 58 62 61 54 56

It is a good investment 56 55 58 54 57 56 51 55

It gives me a sense of pride or accomplishment

57 54 59 54 62 56 42 48

It gives me financial security and something I can borrow against if needed

43 45 45 47 45 47 33 36

It gives me tax benefits 46 45 48 44 48 47 41 42

It means I can live in an area with better schools

43 44 45 43 46 46 34 43

It allows me to live in a more convenient location closer to family & friends

40 43 41 44 44 44 30 38

It allows me to live in a community where people share my values

45 42 47 48 48 41 35 33

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Now is a great time to buy a home§ 96% agree that with interest rates at historically low levels, now is a great time to buy a home

How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statement: With interest rates at historically low levels, now is a great time for me to buy a home


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

TOTAL AGREE 96 96 96 96 95 98 93 94

Strongly agree 39 39 40 42 42 40 29 30

Agree 35 35 36 34 33 38 35 32

Somewhat agree 22 22 20 20 20 20 29 32

TOTAL DISAGREE 5 4 4 5 5 2 7 6

Somewhat disagree 3 3 3 3 2 1 5 5

Disagree 2 1 1 2 3 1 2 1

With interest rates at historically low levels, now is a great time for me to buy a home

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Homeownership is good for the economy§ Even though it is more difficult to buy a home now than it was for our parents’ generation it

remains an important part of the American Dream

How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statements?Showing % Strongly Agree


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

TOP HALF

Homeownership is an important part of the American Dream

42 39 42 42 46 41 34 29

With interest rates at historically low levels, now is a great time for me to buy a home

39 39 40 42 42 40 29 30

Homeownership is good for the economy 41 38 42 40 45 37 30 33

Finding the right home and community is crucial to helping my family be happy

33 31 34 36 36 31 27 21

The housing crisis reminded me that I have to be more careful about buying or selling a home

30 28 24 26 31 27 41 34

It’s more difficult to buy a home now than it was for my parents’ generation

34 27 31 26 34 27 37 29

Having a good realtor can help me make the right choices about the type of home and community I want

28 26 29 29 29 27 23 17

Having a realtor when buying or selling a home is worth the fee

22 19 25 22 23 19 14 12

I trust my realtor’s advice 18 16 25 22 16 15 9 6

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Homeownership is part of the American Dream§ 42% strongly agree that homeownership is an important part of the American Dream, up 3

points from the first quarter

How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statement: Homeownership is an important part of the American Dream


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

TOTAL AGREE 96 96 97 95 97 97 95 95

Strongly agree 42 39 42 42 46 41 34 29

Agree 35 35 37 34 31 33 38 42

Somewhat agree 19 22 18 19 20 23 23 24



Disagree 1 1 2 2 0 1 1 1

Homeownership is an important part of the American Dream

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Contemplators are waiting for the right time to buy or sell§ Lingering economic uncertainty and fears of being unable to sell current home are holding back

Contemplators

IF CONTEMPLATOR: Earlier in the survey, you indicated that you’ve been considering buying or selling a home for the past year. For what reasons, if any, have you not yet bought or sold a home? Select all that

apply.

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Potential buyers and sellers have to be more careful§ 93% agree that the housing crisis reminded them to be more careful about buying or selling a

home, unchanged from the previous wave

How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statement: The housing crisis reminded me that I have to be more careful about buying or selling a home


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

TOTAL AGREE 93 93 92 93 94 94 99 92

Strongly agree 30 28 24 26 31 27 41 34

Agree 37 37 38 33 38 42 36 35

Somewhat agree 26 28 50 34 25 25 22 23



Disagree 2 2 3 2 1 1 1 1

The housing crisis reminded me that I have to be more careful about buying or selling a home

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Having a good agent is important§ 28% strongly agree that having a good agent can help them make the right choices when it

comes to buying a home, up 2 points from the first quarter

How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statement: Having a good realtor can help me make the right choices about the type of home and community I want


Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012 Q2 2012 Q1 2012

TOTAL AGREE 90 91 90 92 90 93 90 86

Strongly agree 28 26 29 29 29 27 23 17

Agree 34 36 35 35 35 37 30 36

Somewhat agree 28 29 26 28 26 29 37 33



Disagree 3 3 3 3 3 3 1 5

Having a good realtor can help me make the right choices about the type of home and community I want