Two in Five Women Dating Online Want a Homeowner Partner

Two in five American women dating online want a partner who owns a home, a new survey finds.

DatingScout's State of Online Dating 2026, released November 10 and built on 53,902 respondents in 18 countries, found 40.4 percent of American women seeking a partner online want one who owns a home, against 18.9 percent of American men. [GlobeNewswire — DatingScout.com releases The State of Online Dating 2026 (November 10, 2026)]

The gender gaps run through the whole instrument. Worldwide, 42.1 percent of women said a partner being unemployed would rule them out instantly, against 14.1 percent of men. On the first-date bill, 43 percent of men said the man should pay, only 24.5 percent of women agreed, and almost half of women, 49 percent, said they would rather split it. Respondents could choose several qualities they want in a partner, so the figures measure how often a trait makes the list rather than a single top demand. [GlobeNewswire — DatingScout.com releases The State of Online Dating 2026 (November 10, 2026)]

The housing number lands on a specific demographic fact: the National Association of Realtors puts the typical first-time homebuyer at a record age of 40, while the average online dater in this study is 39.5, which means the homeownership screen many women apply is being applied at almost exactly the age buyers first clear it. Method matters, too: this is DatingScout's ongoing reader survey, running since January 2025 and self-selected rather than sampled, so it reads as a directional picture of people actively dating online, not a census of singles. Directional is still useful. The screen is real, it is lopsided, and it tightens as house prices set the timetable. [GlobeNewswire — DatingScout.com releases The State of Online Dating 2026 (November 10, 2026)]