Aside from tiny Slovenia, it is the richest of the countries that formally join the European Union next year. Single women now buy one in seven properties and account for nearly a fifth of new mortgage lending.Building firms are cashing in on the demographic shift. "Women are now choosing to get married much later, and in some cases to remain childless," said Pierre Williams, a spokesman for the House Builders Federation. "They are concentrating instead on high-paying professions, and have the income to demand a home suited to their lifestyle."David Wilson Homes, a national construction firm, has just completed a new development on the outskirts of Leicester which is targeted largely at single women.Bev Weston, the group marketing manager, said numbers of Sarahs were now rivalling those of Dinkies - double-income, no kids - on the housing market. "It's a phenomenon that's increased dramatically over the past two years," she said. "There are a lot more single people out there now, and as a housebuilder we have to recognise that."These women have what they need - a good job, good money and a good lifestyle - and they can live happily without a man. Now all they need is somewhere to live."They tend to want open-plan apartments with larger bathrooms and wardrobes, high security and low maintenance.

They don't want to have any hassles with DIY, because they won't have time to do it. They may also want extra space to give them the option of working from home, and a spare room for guests."A number of electrical manufacturers have also recognised the trend. Companies such as Siemens, Kitchen Vision and Bosch produce a whole range of products for the busy career woman. Sarahs' kitchens can now be filled with the latest gadgets, from juicers to pizza ovens and "ice boxes" - integrated television and computer screens that allow working girls "to email while cooking".Lynn Morgan, 38, a sales director from Scotland, has purchased a new three-bedroom property in Oxfordshire that was marketed for single women.In keeping with the Sex and the City mantra, Ms Morgan ensured she had a large walk-in wardrobe, and turned her third bedroom into a state- of-the-art dressing room. It also came fitted with extra locks on all the windows.The low maintenance particularly appealed to Ms Morgan. As a career women she had "no desire" to spend her valuable time on home maintenance "My DIY skills are hopeless," she said "I am absolutely clueless.".

Suria Clarke's family realised that she must have been in the World Trade Centre's north tower when the first plane hit, long before the discovery of an email she had sent from her desk that morning provided the conclusive proof. A poignant reminder of a life that once was, in all other respects the email seemed academic In fact it was anything but. In fact it was anything but. For the families of the victims of September 11 - in particular, for British families such as the Clarkes - the grief of the past two years has been compounded by the bureaucratic complexities of the aftermath of the tragedy. Questions of identification, compensation and insurance are still not fully resolved All manner of legal niceties have had to be grappled with The unearthing of documents has been long and painstaking Relatives of the dead have had to supply DNA samples. And the fact that there are two countries involved has only made the process more tortuous.In all this the existence of Suria Clarke's email - sent to a friend she was planning to meet for lunch later that day - turned out to be a vital part of the jigsaw of her life that her family has had to piece together for the authorities. Before life insurance companies pay out, they like to know that the person insured really is dead.