The housing collapse appears to have done little to change the preferences of home buyers. We still want more house, without paying a lot up front.

Those are the findings of a new survey out this week from Zillow. The housing website commissioned Harris Interactive to run a poll on buyer sentiment, surveying people who plan to buy in the next two years. Some things, they found, never change.

The most popular reason to buy was “I want/need a bigger house.” 55 percent of respondents said that was a motivating factor. Second was affordability. 44 percent said: “Home prices are currently at a level I can afford.” Another 34 percent pointed to low mortgage rates. 20 percent said the first-time homebuyer tax credit was a factor and 17 percent pointed to the opportunity to buy a foreclosed or distressed home. Despite lots of talk about downsizing Baby Boomers, only 5 percent said they’d buy because they wanted a smaller home.

More than half - 59 percent - plan to be in their homes less than 10 years. 8 percent think they’ll buy for life, or at least 31 years or more.

And, despite the wave of subprime lending that has swamped the economy, 17 percent of buyers said they still plan to put no money down on a home purchase (the survey’s most surprising finding, according to Zillow). Another 36 percent plan to put 10 percent or less down. On the flip side, 22 percent plan to pay more than one-fifth of a home’s cost up front.

Anyway, check out the survey, and some commentary from Zillow, here.

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