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SAN FRANCISCO, March 5, 2009 – A national consumer survey released today by real estate leader Trulia overwhelmingly highlights the “American Dream” of owning a home is still alive and well even as the recession deepens; however the survey shows a stunning lack of confidence among Americans that President Barack Obama can stabilize the housing market this year.

According to the latest American Dream Survey by Trulia.com, more than 3 in 4 Americans surveyed still consider owning a home as a part of achieving their personal American Dream, but consumers agree that economic incentives, among the policies advocated in the housing plan put forward by the Administration, are not the most important things that can be done to restore faith in the American Dream of home ownership, which could help in solving the housing crisis. Unfortunately, only 5 percent said these incentives would be the single most important thing President Obama can do to restore faith, and only 21 percent believe forcing banks to renegotiate with homeowners is the single most important thing that can be done to stabilize housing. More than half of all consumers, 53 percent, believe creating jobs and establishing job security is the single most important thing President Obama can do to restore faith in the American Dream of home ownership.

“Americans cling to homeownership as a central part of their American Dream, but tax incentives and other housing specific policies intended to remedy the housing slump are not the highest priority for most Americans,” said Pete Flint, CEO of Trulia.com. “While he’s facing partisanship in the Capitol, Republicans and Democrats across the country are making it very clear that the way to restore faith and solve the housing crisis lies in preserving and creating jobs.”

Single Most Important Thing President Can Do
According to Trulia’s American Dream survey, regardless of political party, Democrats and Republicans agree on the priority for what needs to be done to stem the housing fallout.

The Next Year
Consumers in both parties may agree on what needs to happen to restore confidence but they have very different opinions on whether Obama can stabilize the housing market in the next year. Only 10% of Republicans are extremely/very confident  - sthat he can stabilize the market in the next year, while 47% of Democrats are extremely/very confident/confident it will happen in the next year. 

President Obama’s Report Card
Republicans and Democrats may agree on what needs to happen to restore faith in the American Dream of home ownership but they vastly differ on the grade they would give President Obama towards the decisions he’s made in his first 30 days in office. 80% of Democrats would give him grade of “B” or higher compared to only 23% of Republicans.

Additional survey information broken out by different regions and demographics is available in Trulia’s press room: www.trulia.com/info/AmericanDream

The Trulia American Dream survey will be released every six months as a benchmark in measuring consumer sentiment and confidence among households in the U.S.

Survey Methodology
The Trulia American Dream housing study is conducted online periodically by Harris Interactive on behalf of Trulia. Harris Interactive® fielded this study on behalf of Trulia from February 20-24, 2009 via its QuickQuerySM online omnibus service, interviewing a nationwide sample of 2,076 U.S. adults age 18 years or older, of whom 1,418 were homeowners and 595 were renters. Results were weighted as needed for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is available.  

About Trulia, Inc.
Trulia, Inc., has revolutionized real estate search by offering a rich, intuitive user experience to help consumers find homes for sale, track local price trends, compare properties and neighborhood data all at the hyper-local level.  Trulia Voices, the largest real estate community on the web, allows home buyers, sellers, agents and real estate enthusiasts to ask questions, receive advice and blog on topics such as the buying and selling process, foreclosures, refinancing and more.   Trulia’s user-friendly search can also be accessed on more than 100 websites as a result of our media partnerships.  Trulia has received a number of awards, including the 2008 People’s Voice Webby Award in the real estate category.  For more information, visit http://www.trulia.com/.

About Harris Interactive
Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and rich history in multimodal research, powered by our science and technology, we assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.

Media Contacts:
Ken Shuman, kshuman@trulia.com or
Paul Loeffler for Trulia, paul@sutherlandgold.com, 415-848-7176

Downloadable charts of survey results from Trulia.com

Obama's grade, by region

Obama's grade, by gender

Obama's grade, by age

Obama's grade, by political party

Obama's grade, homeowners vs. renters

Obama's grade, by employment status

Obama's grade, by income

Most important thing President can do, by region

Most important thing President can do, by gender

Most important thing President can do, by age

Most important thing President can do, by political party

Most important thing President can do, by homeowners vs. renters

Most important thing President can do, by employment status

Most important thing President can do, by income

Confidence in President, by region

Confidence in President, by gender

Confidence in President, by age

Confidence in President, by political party

Confidence in President, by homeowners vs. renters

Confidence in President, by employment status

Confidence in President, by income