LendingTree has released a study that states single women outpace single men in home ownership in the United States. In a quick summary that prefaces the study on LendingTree’s website, there is also a quick blurb about women’s median weekly earnings only being about 83% of men’s. The study and the stance that women are somehow financially discriminated against on an institutional level don’t really match. If there is a concerted effort to keep the pay of women at a lower level than men, then why is that same discrimination not present in the world of real estate?
The single women vs. single men homeownership study from LendingTree is misleading due to how media outlets cover it. Several headlines state that men are “lagging behind” women regarding homeownership. This is completely false when the entire situation is observed, not just one small slice. Single women account for 19% of recent home purchases compared to 10% of single men. This leaves 71% of homeowners, the vast majority, unaccounted for.
Large corporations such as Blackrock purchase about 20% of properties every year. That leaves 51%. Then, there are small investors, house flippers, and the most crucial group: married couples. Married couples, with men as the predominant breadwinners, will always own more homes than both single women and single men combined. But, somehow, mainstream news outlets entirely omit that simple fact to craft a narrative about underperforming men succumbing to girl power.
SOURCES:
Are Big Companies Really Buying Up Single-family Homes? (2024) | Today’s Homeowner
Single women are racing ahead of men in homeownership. Here’s why. – CBS News
Single Women Own More Homes Than Single Men | LendingTree
More single women buying homes, new data shows – YouTube
