Home With Yard Ideal, Survey Says

Most Americans believe a single-family home with a yard is the ideal place to live, and they’re willing to make large sacrifices to achieve that dream, a survey shows.

The survey, conducted for the Federal National Mortgage Assn., or Fannie Mae, suggested that 80% of Americans identify the “traditional single-family detached home with a yard as the ideal place to live.”

Still, nearly 75% of the 1,521 people polled in the national survey said living in a good neighborhood was more important than living in a good house.

Four out of five of the respondents said they would rather own a home some distance from work than rent within easy commuting distance.

The same number said they would rather own their own home than take a better job in a city in which they could afford only to rent a place.

Two out of three respondents said they believe owning a home is worth taking a second job if necessary.

And three out of four said they would rather own a home than retire 10 years early.