Single-family Homes and the American Dream

Living in a detached single-family home in the suburbs remains a top homeownership dream for American homebuyers across all age groups, according to Zillow's latest Housing Aspirations Report. The report, which surveyed aspiring homeowners across 20 metros found that around 64 percent of the respondents agreed that owning a home was a "key to a higher social status and necessary to live the American Dream."

The report revealed that 70 percent of respondents felt that homeownership increased one's standing in the community. If there were no money or budget constraints, 94 percent of the respondents said they would own a home. the current rate of homeownership is at 64 percent in the U.S. today, Zillow said, making money "clearly an object for many would-be homeowners who are currently renting."

Looking at the type of homes they wished to live in, the report found that 82 percent of the respondents preferred living in a single-family home. However, 9 percent of young adults said that they would choose an attached single-family home. Ten percent of those surveyed said that they preferred living in a condo or a co-op and only 7 percent of Americans preferred living in a townhome.

Despite single-family homes topping the list of ideal abodes across the country, cities like New York, Miami, Chicago, and Tampa had a higher share of respondents who were willing to "embrace denser living arrangements," the report said. In these cities, 12 percent or more respondents identified condos, co-ops, or apartments as their ideal housing type.

Suburbs topped the list of locations where these aspiring homeowners would like to settle down, the report revealed, with 56 percent of the respondents across race and ethnicity saying they preferred living in a suburban area, followed by 26 percent who preferred the urban areas. The report also indicated that the desire to live in an urban area was higher among Hispanics and Asians.

While respondents in Philadelphia, Detroit, and Boston were most likely to prefer the suburbs, those hailing from Miami, San Jose, and San Francisco were more likely to choose an urban living area to call home.

The American Dream though is evolving, the report said, with young adults having slightly different preferences such as renting, living in a townhome, urban communities, and good access to public transit.