Young families hamstrung by the lack of affordability within the city’s freehold housing market are looking to condos to raise their children in more affordable living spaces.

For the estimated 13 per cent of Toronto families that often means family-sized or three-bedroom condos. But good luck finding them. Many of today’s newer condos comprise some pretty un-family friendly traits: high carrying costs, meagre layouts and small quarters. As a result, these units end up being rented by students or young professionals who share the costs with their roommates.

According to Bedrooms in the Sky, a 2017 report by Ryerson University and Urbanation, Toronto may be experiencing a condo boom but it is not building enough family-friendly condos to meet demand. Even though condo construction is geared toward one-bedroom units, developers are building fewer two-bedroom units proportionately than ever before. Urbanation, a high-rise condo development tracking consultancy, says only 38 per cent of condos in development in November 2017 were two bedrooms and larger.

That condo developments are enjoying a boom period is without question. Census data shows that 129,000 of Toronto’s families lived in condos in 2016, up 8.9 per cent from 118,000 in 2011, and well above the national average of 8.4 per cent.

But Toronto doesn’t lay claim to the highest number of condo dwellers. In Vancouver more than 30 per cent of the population lives in condos, this, according to the CBC, is far and away the highest percentage in the country. In Calgary, nearly 22 per cent of residents call condos home, followed by Abbotsford-Mission, Kelowna and Toronto, all of which have more than one out of every five households living in a condominium.

The problem, many say, comes down to simple economics. Large, family-sized condos aren’t favoured by developers because it’s difficult to keep them reasonably priced. They also earn more per square foot on smaller condo units.

The report by Ryerson and Urbanation states that there may be some hope for family-friendly condo units of 3+ bedrooms as they are trending upwards, however, these dwellings generally have a resale price of more than $900,000, making them far from affordable.

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The report’s authors warn that if these construction trends continue, the number of family-friendly housing units available in neighbourhoods close to transit, school and other services will continue to decrease, likely along with affordability.