Thursday, August 22, 2002

A story published today by the Evening Standard reports that according to a survey conducted by Halifax, about a quarter of all homebuyers in London are single and female.

In London, women living alone purchased 22% of homes on sale last year, while nationwide, the figure was 17%. The growth in single homebuyers of either sex has been steady over the past 20 years, but has become more pronounced among women as they delay marriage and having children to further their careers.

In 1983, lone female buyers made up just 16% of the London market. Lone males made up 24%. Last year the latter number had risen to 29% in the capital and 23% nationwide.

'The increase in the number of single homebuyers largely reflects the rise in the number of people living alone. Young people are choosing to get married and start having families later than ever before and divorce is on the increase as well.' said Halifax's chief economist Martin Ellis.

'A key factor is the growing financial and economic independence of women over the past two decades,' Ellis said. 'This is especially so in London, where there is a higher percentage of women in relatively well-paid jobs than elsewhere in the country.'

The average age of the first-time mother is now over 27. Delaying marriage and children for the sake of a career and home ownership has been the cause of controversy, with the publication in April of research showing female fertility begins to decline as early as the late twenties