subject: Are Men Better Retirement Savers? [print this page] American women have almost caught up with men when it comes to equal pay for equal work. Despite all of these hard won gains, women still fall behind in one key area. According to many recent studies, women are not doing a good job of saving for retirement. Women do not seem to be able to save as much, and they do not seem to think they need to save as much.
Women over 50 know that they need to make retirement savings a priority. Is there a reason why these women are not saving for retirement as well as they should? To understand the issue, it helps to know which types of women are having the hardest time building a nest egg.
According to surveys, single women, who used to be married, are far behind on their savings plans. Single women, who have always been single, seem to do a better job. Married women, who save with a husband, also seem to be able to sock away more money. In my opinion, this is not surprising. Many single women, who used to be married, have a lot of the burden of paying for childcare. Women usually devote a lot more of their time to caring for kids. This can also limit income and earning years. It is easy to understand, in this light, why women have a harder time saving money. This is particularly true for women who lost a spouse due to a death or divorce.
Part of the problem may also lie with the way that women think about investing their money. Women seem to be more conservative investors too. Sometimes, being conservative keeps people from losing money. Too much caution can keep investors from really getting their money to work for them. Males may be more aggressive when they invest. This seems to pay out in the long run.
Finally, women tend to underestimate how much money they will need to save for comfortable retirement years. When surveys poll men and women, the women seem to underestimate how much money they will need for a comfortable retirement. This is a big problem because women also have longer life spans. A longer life span means that they will need money longer, and so they should be saving more money.
Women have one thing going for them. They are more willing to ask for help. Are you worried that you do not have enough retirement money saved? It may be time to get help from a qualified retirement professional.
by: Marilyn Katz
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