Single and Thinking You Can't Buy a Home on Your Own? Read This First.

If part of you has quietly wondered whether buying a home on your own is actually realistic, or if it's something you have to wait for, a partner, a higher salary, someday, you're not alone in wondering. And you might be closer to "possible" than you think.

New national data from the National Association of REALTORS® is putting a number on something a lot of us in the industry have suspected for a while: Gen Z has a higher share of single-female home buyers than any other generation. According to NAR's "She Came, She Saw, She Closed" report, 30% of Gen Z home buyers were single women, the highest share of any generation.

Let's be clear about what that stat actually means, because it's easy to misread. It doesn't mean 30% of all Gen Z women are out there buying houses, and it doesn't mean Gen Z women are buying more homes than other generations in raw numbers. Gen Z buyers are still a small slice of the overall market right now (NAR puts them at just 3% of buyers overall), since most of Gen Z is still early in their careers, renting, or not yet in a financial position to buy. What the stat tells us is about composition, not volume: among the Gen Z buyers who are stepping into the market, single women make up the largest share of any generation. That's a meaningful signal about who's showing up to buy, even if it's a smaller group overall.

So if you've been operating under the assumption that buying a home is something you do "with" someone, married, engaged, splitting a mortgage with a partner, I want to gently push back on that. It's not the only path, and plenty of women your age are already proving that.

But Let's Be Honest: Buying Alone Isn't Automatically Easy

I'm not going to sit here and tell you that everyone can afford to buy a home right now, because that wouldn't be true, and it's not the kind of REALTOR® I want to be for you. Buying on one income is genuinely harder than buying on two. Your income has to stretch further, and your margin for error is smaller.

But "harder" is not the same as "impossible," and "I don't know if I can afford this" is not the same as "I definitely can't." I talk to first-time buyers regularly, and I can tell you: some come in already convinced homeownership is out of reach for them. Sometimes that turns out to be true, at least for right now, and that's okay too. But just as often, once we actually sit down with a lender and look at the real numbers, their options look different than they assumed. You genuinely don't know until someone runs the math on your specific situation.

You deserve to find out what's actually possible for you, instead of deciding on your own that it's not, before anyone's even run the numbers.

Let's Clear Up a Few Assumptions

A lot of the hesitation I hear from single women, especially younger ones, comes down to a handful of beliefs that feel true but usually aren't the whole story.

"I need to be married or have two incomes to buy a home." Nope. Mortgages are approved based on your individual income, credit, and debt, not your relationship status. Single buyers qualify every day. The math has to work for your income specifically, but there's no rule anywhere that says you need a co-buyer.

"I need 20% down." This is probably the most persistent myth in real estate, and it stops more people from even starting the conversation than almost anything else. Many loan programs allow for significantly less than 20% down, and depending on the loan type and your situation, there may be down payment assistance options worth exploring too. Twenty percent is a good goal in some cases, it's not the entry requirement.

"My first home has to be a 'real' single-family house." It doesn't, and for a lot of first-time single buyers, starting smaller is the smarter move. NAR's data shows that 23% of Gen Z single female buyers purchased a townhouse and 20% purchased a condo. A first home doesn't have to be your forever home. It has to be a smart, sustainable first step that builds equity while you figure out what's next.

"I should wait until I'm older or making significantly more money." Sometimes waiting is genuinely the right call. But sometimes "I'll wait until I make more" quietly turns into years of renting while prices and rates move without you. The only way to know if now is your moment is to actually look at the numbers, not to assume.

How Single Buyers Are Actually Making It Work

NAR's research also shows how resourceful single female buyers are being about down payments. Younger buyers lean heavily on personal savings, and gifts from family or friends are common too. Older single women tend to use proceeds from selling a previous home. There's no single "right" way to fund a down payment, there are multiple realistic paths, and part of my job is helping you figure out which one fits your life.

What This Looks Like Here in Solano County

I work with first-time buyers throughout Suisun City, Fairfield, Vacaville, Vallejo, Benicia, Dixon, and Rio Vista, and the "starter home" conversation comes up often. Here in Solano County, I often encourage first-time buyers to look beyond just the traditional single-family home and consider whether a condo, townhome, or smaller home could make sense as their first step.

If you're a single woman in or around Solano County wondering whether this is even worth exploring, my honest answer is: probably, at least worth a conversation. Not a commitment, not a guarantee, just a real look at where you stand.

The First Step Isn't a House. It's a Conversation.

You don't have to have it all figured out before you reach out. You don't need a perfect credit score, a huge down payment saved, or a five-year plan. The national data makes one thing clear: single women, especially young ones, are already doing this. The only way to know if you can too is to actually ask, not assume.

Source: Statistics on single female home buyers by generation are drawn from the National Association of REALTORS®' "She Came, She Saw, She Closed: The Generational Trends of Single Female Home Buying" (April 2025), based on NAR's Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends research.

FAQ

Can I get a mortgage as a single woman with only one income? Yes. Lenders evaluate your individual income, credit history, and debt, not your marital status. Single buyers qualify for mortgages regularly. What you qualify for depends on your specific financial picture, which is why a conversation with a lender is the best first step.

Do I really need 20% down to buy a house? No. Twenty percent isn't a universal requirement. Depending on the loan program and your situation, buyers can often put down significantly less, and some down payment assistance programs may apply. A lender can walk you through what's realistic for you.

Is it smart to buy a condo or townhome as a first home instead of a single-family house? For many first-time buyers, yes. Starter homes like condos and townhomes can be a more affordable entry point into ownership and still build equity over time. Your first home doesn't have to be your last.

How do I know if I'm actually ready to buy a home on my own? The only real way to know is to look at your specific numbers, income, credit, savings, and goals, with a lender and a local agent. Assuming you're not ready without checking is different from actually finding out.

Courtney Bolger is a REALTOR® with HomePivot (DRE 02048878), serving first-time buyers throughout Suisun City, Fairfield, Vacaville, Vallejo, Benicia, Dixon, and Rio Vista.