Mary Pilon of Bloomberg writes that there is a greater likelihood that single women, more than single men, may be parenting on their own. Establishing their own private physical space may also be a higher priority for women who want both a sense of security and a place to put down roots. In 2011, there were 8.6 million single-mother households vs. 2.6 million single-father ones.
Another reason: today more people are single. In 1960, only 9% of Americans 25 years and older were unmarried where today that number as grown to 20% of Americans over the age of 25. Even though a higher percentage of these unmarried individuals are men, it is women who buy more homes for the reasons previously listed.
Also, women may be likelier than men to choose and accept the single lifestyle according to Bella DePaulo of UC- Santa Barbara in her book Singled Out. DePaulo says, “Buying a home is a way of living your single life fully, rather than seeing your single years as just marking time until you find The Other”. When women do buy, they are typically older than men (age 34 vs. 31) and also buy at a lower price (which may reflect their lower incomes).
Women have a slighly higher foreclosure rate (73 vs 71 per 10,000) so it is always important to review your debt vs. income when deciding how much house you can afford.