Single Women Home Buyers: Key to the Housing Recovery?

Looking to sell your home? Make sure you don't overlook single women as potential buyers. A recent National Association of Realtors report found that single women outdistanced unmarried men when it came to buying real estate in 2009.

Unmarried women made 21 percent of home purchases, while single guys made up 10 percent of the buyers. According to the research, single females also made up a quarter of first time-home buyers.

This wasn't always the case. In 1995, single women represented only 14 percent of home buyers. But in recent years, they have raced ahead of their male counterparts in snapping up real estate.

"More women are educated," says Lisa Lauricella, a licensed associate broker with Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty in Syosset, N.Y. "They are climbing up corporate ladders. They are getting married later and think it's a financial decision." The study backs her up. Single women buyers tend to be a little older than the average home buyer; their typical age is 41, compared to 39 for all home buyers. Perhaps these savvy shoppers can save the housing market.

Not all single women buyers are living the "Sex and the City" lifestyle, of course.