Boston is the 12th best market for single female homeowners, according to a new study from Owners.com. The online real estate brokerage ranked the 20 best MSAs for single women to buy a home.

A number of factors were taken into account including the percentage of single women homeowners, housing affordability, crime rates and access to public transportation. It also removed any MSAs where women earn below-average incomes.

Although the Boston-Worcester-Providence MSA has a relatively high average home value ($333,200), it also boasts a high median female income ($50,607). Approximately 16.5 percent of homeowners in the area are single female homeowners.

The study found that cities in the top 10 markets offer extremely affordable housing with the top 10 markets being 70 percent more affordable than the bottom 10 on the list. Additionally, the top 10 markets have 5.1 percent more single women homeowners than the bottom 10. This suggests that affordability is a measurable factor for single women who are purchasing a home.

“There is a noticeable shift toward more single women entering the real estate market, particularly given lower unemployment rates, rising incomes and the value placed on home ownership,” said Phil Karp, senior manager of brokerage services at Owners.com. “Housing inventory remains low and costs are high throughout the country. Savvy buyers should seek modernized brokerage models that not only offer rebates at close, but also provide data to support smarter, data-informed purchase decisions.”