Single Women Kick Butt in the Housing Market
By Zoe Eisenberg, RISMedia
Over the past 12 months, single women made up 17 percent of all homebuyers, purchasing at twice the rate of their single male counterparts, according to a new annual report from the National Association of REALTORS®.
Furthermore, 2016 research from MGIC Connects shows single women representing the second-largest home-buying group, right behind married couples. This is even more impressive when you consider wage inequality, which is still a country-wide issue. In 2015, women made only 80 cents for every dollar earned by men working a comparable job—a gender wage gap of a shocking 20 percent.
So, women are kicking butt in the housing market. But who are these ladies? According to NAR's 2015 Profile of Buyers and Sellers report, the median age of the single female buyer is 32 years old, and their median income is $49,000. But it's not just 30-something ladies purchasing their homes solo, but baby boomers, divorced and out on their own, or downsizing from a family home they no longer need.
What's in store for the future of female-owned housing? When you consider the consistent rise in the educated woman (meaning higher-paying jobs and more opportunities), well, things are looking pretty peachy.
How to Keep Rodents out of Your Home
Your family is not the only group spending more time indoors as the temperature drops. Fall is also prime time for rodents to make moves into your home as they seek food and shelter. It only takes a hole the size of a quarter for a rat to squeeze inside, and a hole the size of a dime for mice. Rodents are also known to chew around holes to make them larger, after which they can slip into homes.
Experts recommend the following tips to help prevent rodents around the home:
Regularly inspect the home – inside and outside – for rodent droppings, rub marks or burrows.
Seal all cracks and gaps around utility penetrations larger than 1/4 of an inch, as well as install weather stripping at the bottom of exterior doors.
Trim overgrown branches, plants and bushes near the home, and consider keeping a 2-foot barrier between any landscaping and the home.
Store all food (including pet food) and garbage properly in sealed containers both indoors and outdoors.
Remove all pet bowls after animals are finished eating, and remove pet waste from the lawn promptly.