Gender Gap

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​On February 25th, The Economist published an article "Single Women are Losing Out in the Property Market" on Gender Gap Wealth with the lead that ​in 2015 women held just 30% of all global private wealth according to the Boston Consulting Group. 

The chart presented here, one of many, is based on data from nine million housing transactions in the U.S. between 1991 and 2017 presented in January 2020 by Paul Goldsmith-Pinkham and Kelly Shue of the Yale School of Management in a PDF titled The Gender Gap In Housing Returns.

"Data on repeat sales reveal that women buy the same property for approximately 2% more and sell for 2% less."

THE GENDER GAP IN HOUSING RETURNS
PAUL GOLDSMITH-PINKHAM & KELLY SHUE
January 2020 Abstract

Housing wealth represents the dominant form of savings for American households.
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Using detailed data on housing transactions across the United States since 1991, we find that single men earn 1.5 percentage points higher unlevered returns per year on housing relative to single women, with couples occupying the intermediate range. The gender gap grows significantly larger after adjusting for mortgage borrowing: men earn 7.9 percentage points higher levered returns per year relative to women. 

Approximately 45% of the gap in housing returns can be explained by gender differences in the location and timing of transactions. The remaining gap arises primarily from gender differences in execution prices: data on repeat sales reveal that women buy the same property for approximately 2% more and sell for 2% less. Women experience worse execution prices because of differences in the choice of initial list price and negotiated discount relative to the list price.

Gender differences in upgrade and maintenance rates, and preferences for housing characteristics and listing agents appear to be less important factors. Overall, the gender gap in housing returns is economically large and can explain 30% of the gender gap in wealth accumulation at retirement.

I could not find a similar study focusing on the gender gap in Canadian housing wealth, but StatCan did release in October 2019 their "Gender Wage Gap in Canada" 1998 to 2018". Here is a chart and the highlights:  

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​In 2018, female employees aged 25 to 54 earned $4.13 (or 13.3%) less per hour, on average, than their male counterparts. In other words, these women earned $0.87 for every dollar earned by men.

The gender gap in hourly wages has narrowed by $1.04 (or 5.5 percentage points) since 1998, when it was $5.17 (or 18.8%).

The reduction in the gender wage gap between 1998 and 2018 was largely explained by changes in the distribution of men and women across occupations; women’s increased educational attainment; and the decline in the share of men in unionized employment.

The two largest factors explaining the remaining gender wage gap in 2018 were the distribution of women and men across industries, and women’s overrepresentation in part-time work. These were also the largest explanatory factors behind the gap in 1998.

Similar to other studies, nearly two-thirds of the gap in 2018 was unexplained. Possible explanations for this portion include gender differences in characteristics that were beyond the scope of this study, such as work experience, as well as unobservable factors, such as any gender-related biases.

Also see my chart on Full Time and Part Time Workers in Canada by Age since 1976

BECAUSE: Older part time workers in Canada, 45 and older, both men and women want work. That trend accelerated for men after the equities crash of 2000 and for women after the 2008 housing crash. When balance sheets approach a negative state, additional income becomes a major household requirement and in 2019, household debt, both by loans and mortgages grew to record levels.
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New Study Provides Clearer Look at Canada's Gender Pay Gap
Global News, January 14, 2020

"It's been well established Canadian women, on average, earn less money than their male counterparts. Now as Abigail Bimman reports, researchers say they've discovered just how soon the disparity begins, and how it quickly widens."