RoschetzkyIstockPhoto via Getty Images An aerial view of homes in a suburban development. A new survey for realtor Sotheby's finds the vast majority of young urban families prefer detached homes to higher-density forms of housing.

Canada's young families are giving up on the dream of owning a single-family home, but it's not out of a desire to live an urban high-rise life — the cost has simply become too prohibitive. That's the key takeaway from a new study carried out by Sotheby's International Realty Canada, which found that, if money were no object, 83 per cent of young families would buy a detached home as opposed to any other type of housing. Only 5 per cent prefer condos. "The popular perception is that people in modern families have typically preferred multi-unit and city centre locations, when in fact what the report shows is if price were no object, they would prefer single family homes," said Brad Henderson, president and CEO of Sotheby's Canada. Watch: This is Canada's most expensive condo (story continues below)

The study looked at what it called "modern urban families" — those where the eldest adult is 20 to 45 years old — in Canada's four largest metro areas: Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. It found that, for homebuyers, space is the top priority. "Families placed the highest priority on achieving 'value per square foot' in their actual home purchased over design, layout and other feature considerations," the report noted. It found that 43 per cent of families who own property but not a single-family home have given up on ever buying one. Another 18 per cent plan to buy a detached home in the city centre, while 21 per cent have set their sights on the suburbs. In Vancouver, North America's least affordable housing market, fully 55 per cent have given up on owning a single-family home.

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