Even for a married couple, buying and maintaining a house can be difficult. So, when a single person wants to make the life-changing decision to purchase a home, they know there are challenges. One woman in Tennessee is now telling others her story after she discovered it’s not so easy to purchase a home if you’re a single woman. The housing market is already in the dump, why make it harder?
Tabitha (@tabithaswatosh on TikTok) shared her video, captioned, “I feel crazy :’) like LET ME BUY A HOUSE WHAT??” In a house shopping update, she says the agents she has been working with are “sexist.” According to her, she’s told to dress nicely and wear makeup when she goes to view properties she’s interested in. She also said she went to view a specific property, and the agent asked her, “Are you married?” When she told him she wasn’t, he said he wasn’t “comfortable” showing her the house. The reason? It was just her, and he’d feel more comfortable with a couple with two incomes.
Tabitha was also turned away from a home because she told one of the sellers she was 24 years old. Apparently, that’s too young to buy a house! Tabitha personally explains one agent wanted to see her bank statements before they would even consider giving her a tour. The sexist realtors just can’t fathom a young woman having enough income to afford a house, right?
One of the most difficult aspects of home-buying for her is only having five months to leave her apartment. She did note, however, her landlord has been incredibly understanding of the situation. That doesn’t mean she can wait forever, though, and she deserves to have a home of her own just like anybody else.
She pointed out, “I just wish that these homeowners could see the way that these agents are acting because, imagine that they could be selling a house. But because they won’t let young people or women buy the houses, they’re missing out on sales.” She also hilariously pointed out, “Not only can we vote now, but we can also buy houses!”
The outright discrimination is enough to make your blood boil for Tabitha, who literally just wants a place to live. Luckily, commenters gave some good advice to Tabitha for the future. One commented, “So like they can’t do this. At all. As a realtor this is a huge violation of fair housing. Do you have a pre-approval?”
Another commenter suggested telling them, “’can you provide the reason for not showing me the house in writing please? I’d like to have a paper trail as to why I am not allowed to see the house’ They’ll either change their tune real quick or send you an email, which you can use to file a complaint for discrimination.” I like the way these people think; it’s very lawyerly.
