The composition of American homeownership is evolving. The outdated notion that women are co-borrowers on a mortgage application is being challenged as more women take on homeownership responsibilities on their own. Despite earning just 82.1% of the median weekly salary of men, single women purchased more than double the number of homes as single men (21% vs. 9%) in 2025, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Among first-time buyers, 25% of buyers were single women and 10% were single men.
While more women are achieving homeownership, their motivations and approaches to the homebuying process differ, and the mortgage and real estate industries should be prepared to address them. According to the NextGen Homebuyer Report, women approach home buying more carefully and cautiously than men. They often face greater financial challenges in achieving mortgage eligibility, which they approach with a “cost savings mindset.” Men see homeownership as an investment. Whether that is their primary reason to buy or because their purchase is another investment to add to their portfolio alongside stocks, high-yield savings accounts, and retirement accounts.
Women fear being taken advantage of and not having a trusted advisor. However, they are prepared to conduct research and spend time qualifying for a mortgage. Mortgage originators can earn their business by being the trusted advisors they seek and by empowering them with financial solutions to overcome the obstacles they face in qualifying for a mortgage.
The gender wage gap slows down women’s financial progression
While women ended 2025 with 57.5% participation in the workforce (10.3% less than men), there persists a gender wage gap that negatively impacts the ability of single women to become homeowners. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers report released on January 28, 2026, women had median weekly earnings of $1,089, or 82.1% of the $1,326 median for men. The wage gap was even more significant among the major racial and ethnic groups. White women earned 81.8% as much as their male counterparts, compared with 90.7% for Black women, 78.4% for Asian women, and 88.6% for Hispanic women.
Although women earn less than men on average, they are prioritizing homeownership and making financial sacrifices, including working additional hours, taking on a second job, or moving in with family, to save for a home. Women acknowledge the financial responsibilities involved in purchasing a home and set themselves financial goals to achieve before starting their homebuying process. Many women want to improve their credit and financial well-being by paying down outstanding debt and saving for a sizeable down payment. According to Maxwell, 60% of single women said they saved for 2+ years for their down payment, and ranked education as the second most important factor in choosing a lender, so loan officers need a long-term nurturing strategy to educate homebuyers, keep them engaged, and build trust.
Mortgage lenders and loan officers can offer a FinLocker-powered app to provide financial education and improve their financial health before applying for a mortgage. They can build their credit by monitoring their credit report and using tools to improve their credit score. FinLocker categorizes transactions in their bank and credit card accounts and provides a spending analysis to show where they are spending their income, helping them identify where they can save towards their down payment and closing costs. They can also create a personalized budget to pay down debt and reduce their debt-to-income ratio. Homebuyers can monitor their progress towards mortgage eligibility with the homeownership snapshot, which perpetually analyzes their enrolled financial data, and receive an action plan to help them overcome any financial challenges before they get pre-qualified for a mortgage and start their property search.
Women tend to have increased caretaker experiences
Many single women homebuyers have caretaking responsibilities, such as caring for children or becoming the sole caregiver to an elderly parent. It can be challenging for single women to balance financially supporting their families and investing in their dream of homeownership.
Women have a higher rate of financing a home purchase with a conventional 30-year or 15-year fixed-rate loan than with any other loan product. Single mothers may need the additional financial support that down payment assistance programs provide low-income homebuyers to help them qualify.
While single mothers will benefit from FinLocker’s time-saving financial management tools, the app also offers a seamless way to initiate a mortgage application, saving time for all homebuyers, mortgage originators, and their operations teams.
Helping women find a home that meets their needs
Women are more likely than men to purchase a home near friends, family, and healthcare facilities. Mothers also consider proximity to schools to make balancing their career and child-rearing responsibilities easier.
FinLocker includes a property search to help women research sale prices, plan their homebuying budget, and begin their property search once they achieve mortgage eligibility. Providing women with tools to conduct their home search at their convenience will help them identify homes that meet their needs.
Women face higher mortgage rates and higher mortgage denials
Due to financial factors such as the gender wage gap, many single women have high debt-to-income ratios and a poor credit profile, resulting in a higher rate of mortgage denials than single men.
Men are significantly more likely to learn about financial planning from a young age. In contrast, women can benefit from their mortgage originator’s financial knowledge. Rather than leaving prospective homebuyers to self-determine when they have met loan requirements to pre-qualify for a mortgage, FinLocker will guide them through a personalized journey showing them what they need to do to qualify and when they are mortgage-eligible.
When women overcome financial barriers to homeownership, they emerge with higher credit scores and lower debt-to-income ratios than single men. Despite lower income levels, single women also typically put down larger down payments and default on loans less frequently than single men.
How mortgage lenders improve communication during the mortgage process
While female faces representing all races are seen in the real estate industry, the mortgage industry has responded more slowly. Increasing the number of women in customer-facing roles at mortgage lenders will help improve communication and reduce gender discrimination.
Women favor image-centric social media platforms like YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. They are more likely to follow brands on social media, so it should be easier for mortgage lenders, loan officers, and real estate agents to attract them with financial education and practical information on the mortgage process, money management, and homebuying.
As women continue to gain employment and become heads of households, more will achieve homeownership. Financial tools and education, a streamlined digital mortgage application, and a transparent loan process will make it easier for more women to achieve and sustain homeownership.
To learn how FinLocker can prepare your female homebuyers for hoemownership, watch an online demo or book a demo.
Article was updated on March 7, 2026.
