Polls finds Americans don't see housing recovery coming soon

A new Harris Interactive survey conducted for RealtyTrac and Trulia finds that many Americans are very pessimistic about the state of the housing market, and most feel that a recovery is still years away.

According to the report, just 41 percent of respondents felt that the real estate market would recover either in 2012 or earlier, while 22 percent said that the market will still be working its way back in 2015 or later.

"More and more, American homeowners, sellers and buyers are tamping down their expectations for a swift recovery in the housing market and bracing themselves for a long, slow climb back to a healthy real estate market," said Pete Flint, co-founder and CEO of Trulia.

The report also found that in the wake of the nationwide foreclosure controversy, Americans were becoming more wary of buying foreclosed properties, with 81 percent of respondents saying that they felt there were downsides to such a purchase - up from 78 percent during a survey back in May.

Many prospective buyers are completely turning their backs on Houston foreclosures. According to Campbell Surveys, 14 percent of buyers looking for a place to live didn't even want to look at foreclosures.