Number of People Living Alone Surges Across U.S. Cities

 Smart Asset - 

On average, the rate of single people living alone jumped to 28%. Five years prior, that figure was 24%. In Arlington, VA, which had the most drastic increase, the proportion of people living alone jumped from 11% to 41%.

Single people make up nearly half of households in these cities. The largest single populations across men and women are Washington, D.C. (48.23%); St. Louis, MO (47.49%); Alexandria, VA (46.52%); Richmond, VA (46.23%); Cincinnati, OH (46.20%); and Cleveland, OH (46.20%).

In the D.C. area, more than 25% of households are single women. Single-woman households are most prominent in Richmond, VA (28.00%); Washington, D.C. (26.74%); and Alexandria, VA (26.23%). These areas also saw the largest increases in the proportion of single women living alone over five years, with greater than 15% of households added to this cohort. Other areas with large bachelorette populations include St. Louis, MO (25.70%); New Orleans, LA (25.70%) and Cincinnati, OH (24.63%).

Bachelors make up more than 20% of households in these cities. Single men were most common in Fort Lauderdale, FL (24.68%); Cleveland, OH (23.33%); Fargo, ND (22.73%); Birmingham, AL (21.90%); and St. Louis, MO (21.78%). However, these areas saw the largest five-year increases in the representation of bachelors: Arlington, VA (15.85% more households made up of a single man); Fargo, ND (14.86%); Seattle, WA (14.32%) and Madison, WI (12.72%).

Only one city saw an increase in married families with children. The percent of married people with children as a percent of all households increased only in Odessa, TX. Conversely, this cohort decreased most – by 29.90% – in Edinburgh, TX, followed by Killeen TX at 23.65% decrease.

Traditional families were most common in these cities. More than one-third of households were made up of married couples with children in Frisco, TX (41.94%); Fishers, IN (40.63%); Fremont, CA (37.50%) and Elk Grove, CA (34.16%).