Why are Single Women Buying New Homes?

All the single ladies! It’s time to join the ranks of single women who are purchasing homes. Did you know that single women make up more than one-third of the growth in real estate ownership since 1994.

According to the 2018 National Association of Realtors Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends, single women were the second-largest portion (18 percent) of recent homebuyers. (Married couples were the largest group.) The report also found that most of those single female buyers were at least 72-years-old, which can mean those who have never been married, are divorced or widowed.

So, why are single women purchasing new homes? The top three homebuying triggers for single females are the following:

• A desire to own one’s own home
• A need for more space or to downsize
• A need to relocate for jobs, school or family

For Lauren Szekelyhidi, who purchased a new home at Blanco Vista in San Marcos, Texas, after she had her first child, buying a home meant security for herself and her daughter.
“Buying a home gives you a sense of community; you have a sense of safety,” she says. “You have something to call your own and something that essentially I could pass down, if I want to, to my daughter.”

Szekelyhidi says she chose a new-home community because of the many amenities available for herself, as well as her daughter.

For Bianca Barrera, the security that comes with a home was an important factor in her homebuying decision, particularly a newly built home. “Being a young woman who lives alone, I looked for a place that I felt safe and secure in. I knew in this community [Blanco Vista], there was an elementary school nearby,” Barrera says. “It’s really family oriented, so I felt that I would be surrounded by neighbors that would look out for me.”

Because so many women, single or otherwise, have children, life can get busy. A newly built home in a new-home community means that they don’t have to worry about things like staying home from work to wait for repair companies, because new homes are new and don’t have wear and tear issues that old homes do. And, when there are issues or repairs necessary, home warranties will likely cover it.

There are also the many amenities that new-home communities boast, including community centers, fitness centers, playgrounds, hike and bike trails and close proximity to shopping, dining and family-friendly activities, as well as entertainment for singles without children.

If you’re a single woman who’s contemplating buying a newly built home, there’s no need to wait if you can afford it, says Szekelyhidi. “We, as women, are not waiting for men to help us or aid us or going in on a home,” she says.