You might think today’s economy would have roommate-wanted ads being answered in record numbers, but many single ladies—and gentlemen—are opting to keep living alone, despite the financial burden.

The Tennessean in Nashville reports new U.S. Census data show four million more households were made up of a single person in 2010 than in 2000. That means 27 percent of all American households belong to one person, and the figure rises to 40 percent–plus in highly populated places such as New York, Atlanta, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., the newspaper adds.

Builders are responding with the construction of more one-bedroom homes for the growing number of single empty-nesters looking to downsize and for young professionals who prefer to live solo, according to the Tennessean.

“Singletons want to live alone, but together, surrounded by others who are like them,” Eric Klinenberg, who wrote Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone, tells the newspaper. “Generally, they are interested in finding the right partner; they just won’t settle for the wrong one.”

They’ll need a different kind of “wanted” ad for that.

Click here to read the full story.

Click here to read another fascinating news story.

Don’t miss out on MORE great articles like this one. Click here to sign up for our weekly newsletter!