In observance of Earth Day, Prosper surveyed US consumers last week to better understand their financial attitudes towards implementing eco-friendly home improvements.

The main finding is that although consumers have a strong desire to implement energy-saving home improvements, they are deterred by the high costs of these projects:

• 91% care about conserving natural resources
• While 60% of survey respondents listed ‘saving money on bills’ as an incentive to adopt a green lifestyle, 75% of respondents indicated that they are deterred from pursuing energy-saving home improvements due to high costs of implementation.

As a community for social lending, Prosper offers eco-conscious Americans with good credit histories a way to connect with their like-minded peers to fund green projects in an affordable way. A separate survey of Prosper lenders found that 25% of respondents have bid on borrowers’ loan listings to support green projects, and 93% of respondents would consider bidding on such listings.

1. Are you concerned with conserving natural resources?

2. Which of the following is the number one incentive for you to implement energy saving personal / home improvements? (please select only one)

3. What is the number one deterrent for you to implement energy-saving personal / home improvements? (please select only one)

4. What types of personal / home improvements have you invested in to save energy? (please select all that apply)

5. About how much did you spend in 2007 on energy saving personal / home improvements?

6. What types of personal / home improvements do you plan to implement in 2008 to save energy? (please select all that apply)

7. How much do you expect to spend on energy saving personal / home improvements in 2008?