Widow/Divorce

Sixty six percent of women over 35 will find themselves in poverty when they retire if they don't start saving today. The bottom 40% of households have an average net worth of $900, the majority of these are run by women. Many women spend decades working out of the home, caring for children and the household. Women lose out on Social Security benefits and the ability to build personal savings. Women need to take control of their savings in order to build a secure future. The easiest and the best way to take control of personal savings is to start early. A small amount of money set aside early can grow into a substantial amount of money in the future.

• Women typically outlive men.
  
  • Eighty percent of women will die single.
  • Average age of widowhood is 56.
  • Twenty-five percent of all widows go through their husband's death benefit in two (2) months.
    
• Women don't always get benefits from their husband's retirement plans.
• Many men have a single, life-only annuity for their Social Security and worker pension plans.
• A widow or divorcee gets nothing when a husband dies.
• Many women choose to stay at home while their children are growing up.
• There is little money to invest in personal savings.
  • The average 40 year old woman has only $7,000 dollars saved for retirement
• Women who choose to stay home lose out on Social Security Benefits.
  • The average retired woman gets $621 dollars a month from Social Security.
• Many women don't have pension plans in which to invest.
  • Only 10% of women retire with pension plans.
  • Women change jobs more frequently than men making it more difficult to secure a pension plan.
• Most women earn a lower income than men.
• Seventy-five percent of women earn less than $25,000 in a year.
• The average income of a woman over 65 is $12,000.
  

Retirement Tips For Women

• Start early
  
  • As with all investing, they key is to start now. It is never to late to start investing for the future. The earlier one starts investing, the greater the possibility for returns.
• Don't rely solely on your spouse's retirement plan.
• Be responsible for your own financial future. A little money invested frequently over a long period of time can add up to a large sum of money.
• Saving is more important for women.
• Women outlive men by an average of seven years. It is important to take this into consideration, as most women will need more money for retirement than men.
• Become involved
• Do research on investing and investment strategies. Join an investment club for women.

Social Security

• Pensions are joint assets, and can be divided in a divorce settlement.
• If a marriage lasts for more than ten (10) years, an ex-spouse can collect a portion of the former spouse's social security as soon as that spouse turns 62 and he/she does not qualify for Social Security on his/her own.
• If you were married for ten (10) years and divorced for two (2) years or more, a former spouse qualifies for the same benefits as widow(er).