Converting retirement goals into reality can be challenging-especially for women, who often must overcome special, gender-specific difficulties to attain financial security.These problems include lower average earnings, child custody and support, parent care and longer life expectancies than men. This group of articles explores these specific gender-based issues to help women become better informed about retirement and economic planning.As more women have entered the workforce and their pay moves toward parity with men, women now have more chances to save and invest for retirement. But merely growing women?s financial power will not always result in a higher quality of private retirement planning, greater involvement in retirement programs, a price of savings or wiser investing.The facts tell the story:oWomen stay longer-Statistically, women outlive men by an of about five years. This indicates they?ll have to save more because they?ll have more decades of retirement to fund.oWomen save less-The women?s median contribution rate is six months vs. 8% for men, according to the Ninth Annual Transamerica Small Company Retirement Survey (September 2008), while the savings rate for both men and women falls lacking the minimum suggested 10%. Only 10% of the women surveyed reported home retirement savings totaling over $100,000, compared to 29% of men.oWomen start saving later-Women delay retirement saving later in life than men, so they?ve less years to accumulate a retirement nest egg.oWomen have less to invest-Generally, women have less to spend since, on average, they earn less than men.The poverty rate for many elderly women is 13% according to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2008. Nonetheless, the University of Michigan Retirement Research Center (Might 2003) discovered that for widows, divorced and never-married women, the price jumps to more than 187. Too many rely on Social Security as their only source of income.Next, you?ll find out about the pay differential between men and women-one of the main financial challenges facing women as they arrange for the future.Women save yourself less because they make lessDespite substantial achievements in the workplace, many women remain at a disadvantage when it concerns earning power. No matter what measure is employed, women?s earnings usually remain below those obtained by men.According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average earnings of full-time male employees was $43,460 in 2007. By the same measure, the median income for women was $33,437. But the gap between women?s and men?s earnings closed slightly. In 2007, the female-to-male earnings ratio was 0.78-higher than the past all-time-high of 0.76, first recorded in 2001.Various factors lead to these earnings differences:oWomen?s careers are disrupted more regularly for labor, daycare or elderly parent care. oEven women who gain entry into high-paying jobs can be susceptible to these requirements promptly and attention. oSmaller companies with smaller payrolls normally employ more women than men. oFewer women than men are union members. oMore women than men choose not to work outside the home.For these reasons, it can be especially important for women to become educated about retirement and financial planning programs-and to participate in employer-sponsored retirement plans.Next, we shall examine the competitive needs that several working women face-and often face alone: the treatment of children and elderly parents.The challenges of providing child and parent careWomen?s traditional function as caregivers for both children and elderly family members often encourage special financial hardships and make it even more complicated to set aside cash for the future.This is especially true for women who are custodial parents, dependent on child support payments that might or mightn?t be forthcoming. Based on the 2005 version of Daughter or son Support for Custodial Mothers and Fathers, an U.S. Census Bureau report, approximately 13.6 million parents had custody of children under 21 years of age. And five of every six custodial parents were women.Custodial parents are more likely than men to work part-time and have the best need for child support. However, the Census Bureau study discovered that among the over 11 million custodial moms, only 2.9 million were receiving the full amount of their court-ordered child support payments. Clearly, the unsupplemented burden of daughter or son and household support drops more often to women with single incomes-a proven fact that can have a disastrous effect on retirement-planning efforts.Caring for the elderlyNearly one in four of the nation?s homes is involved in caregiving to relatives or friends aged 50 or older. And about 75% of these caregivers are women. (Source: 101 Facts on the Status of Workingwomen, published in 2005 by the Business and Professional Women?s Foundation). The BPWF report also mentioned that 27% of all caregivers are daughters of those receiving the care, and that female caregivers spend 50% more time delivering care than male caregivers.Further, according to the BPWF, used caregivers are more likely to miss work, lose a job or job opportunity or knowledge other bad economic effects.And then there?s the immediate financial effect. Elderly people living on a fixed income may have more difficulty paying utility bills, medical deductibles, nursing home bills or home healthcare charges. When the elderly parent works just a little brief, the sitter could be needed to make-up the shortfall. Again, this can reduce the amount available to preserve for retirement.What girls can do to make for the futureFinancial planning begins with becoming informed about important economic issues. That?s not as difficult as it might sound, because it just requires a while to see up on funds in dozens of personal financial management books and publications on the market.These guides explain the pros and cons of investments such as mutual funds, variable annuities, certificates of deposit (CDs), money market funds and other investments savings programs such as office retirement plans and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and the concept of risk management through life and long-term care insurance.Next, obtain an awareness of cash management. This calls for checking your checkbook, determining where your money goes on a monthly basis, and finding methods to reduce these outflows if the ways exceed your income. Budgeting is the most simple, most effective way to straighten out equilibrium income and outgo, recognize expenditures that need to be reduced and provide a structure for handling your finances.Now is the time to start using the five-step retirement-planning process:oSet objectives oAnalyze current financial position oDevelop methods oChoose specific purchase choices oEvaluate and follow-up on your planThis procedure may help you decide how much money you?ll need at retirement and make decisions about how to start gathering that money. For more information about financial and retirement planning for women, contact financial advisor, Andrew Brake @ 336-833-3066 or andrew.brake@valic.com.
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Source: http://artyapt.com/blog/girls-have-special-retirement-planning-requires/
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