Single women accounted for more 2009 home purchases than single men at a rate of more than 2 to 1, according to a recent National Association of REALTORS report.
Unmarried women accounted for 21 percent of home purchases in 2009, compared with unmarried men who were 10% of the buyers. The predominant markets for single women home buyers were in California, Texas and Washington, D.C.
From a MarketWatch article:
Still, some industry professionals have been slow to take note of females’ robust activity. Single women have held steady at the 20 % mark for more than five years, yet when the Urban Land Institute hosted its annual real-estate conference in late April, analysts had to remind the audience to expect big numbers from young, single female buyers.
“I’ve given some of my [home-building] clients lessons on how to be gender friendly,” said Brooke Warrick, president of the market research firm American Lives. He reminded sellers to treat young women as viable buyers, not bystanders, by doing something as simple as handing them a brochure when they enter a for-sale home.
Sara Barger, 26, plays with her tenant’s dog outside of the Columbia Heights home she purchased in January, her third buy in three years.
His advice to real-estate developers: “Make sure to pay enough attention to these women. You want these women.”
These women tend to stake their claim on homes in the 1,700-square-foot range predominantly in the Washington, D.C., California and Texas markets, Warrick said.
After segmenting the market, Warrick noticed that young women, especially those rooted in secure industries like health care, make more money than their male peers.
“I think it’s the fact that more and more women realize that a man is no longer the financial plan.”
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