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Single women have long outpaced single men when it comes to homebuying – and they could be ahead financially, too.
Among first-time buyers, single women have a median income of $73,000, compared to $66,400 for single men. This is according to the National Association of Realtors’ 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, which analyzed transactions made between July 2024 and June 2025. Male buyers earn more than their female counterparts.
While it’s uncertain whether the reversal is the start of a new trend, this is the first time the organization has found that income inequality favors women, said Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist and vice president of research at NAR.
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The shift comes as single women make up 25% of first-time homebuyers, compared to 10% for single men. In 1985, those numbers were 11% and 9%, respectively, according to the study. Among all home buyers, 21% are single women and 9% are single men.
“I find [single women] understand how home ownership is a tool for wealth creation. They make sacrifices,” Lautz said.
When it comes to pay, women still lag behind men
Yet men still earn more than women overall, according to the Pew Research Center. According to the organization, in 2024 women earned an average of 85% of what men earned. In 2003 this figure was 81% and in 1982 it was 65%.
Before that, women generally had difficulty getting a mortgage. While the Fair Housing Act of 1968 addressed housing discrimination, it wasn’t until the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974 that women were able to reliably obtain mortgages on their own.
Since then, the proportion of homeowners they represent has grown. According to the Pew Research Center, in 2022, single women owned 58% of the nearly 35.2 million homes owned by unmarried Americans, compared to 42% for single men.
Single women buying a home for the first time have an average age of 44, while single men are 39, the NAR study shows. The age difference for repeat buyers is small: 63 years for women, 64 years for men.
“What I see is that women are not waiting to either get married or find a life partner before moving forward and achieving their financial goals,” said certified financial planner Nicole Romito, a partner at Private Vista in Chicago, who specializes in single women going through life changes, including divorce or death of a spouse or partner.
“Homeownership is generally the top goal – or if not, one of the top three goals [clients] “When we look at their overall financial plan, we want to try to work towards it or maintain it,” Romito said.
Saving for a down payment can mean making sacrifices
Owning a home has become an increasingly difficult goal for many Americans in recent years as higher mortgage rates, rising prices and a limited supply of homes for sale have put monthly payments out of reach for many buyers.
Individual buyers may find it even more difficult to overcome these hurdles if they rely on income to qualify for a mortgage, especially because property values have increased much faster than household incomes. According to a recent study by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, from 2000 to 2024, median per capita income increased by about 155%, while median home prices increased by about 207%.
According to NAR, the median price for an existing home of any type was $398,000 in February. Saving for a down payment and closing costs – amounts paid when your purchase closes, such as: Such as title insurance or property taxes – can be a difficult task.
“It’s difficult to save for a down payment in addition to rent,” Lautz said.
Then the victims come into play, Lautz said. Of single female buyers, 41% said they made financial sacrifices to save enough to buy a home, compared to 31% of men. That includes limiting things like non-essential goods, entertainment and clothing, canceling vacation plans and taking a second job, she said.
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