David Lerner Associates: Retirement Challenges for Women

(Newswire.net — April 27, 2015) Syosset, NEW YORK — What do you imagine when you think about retirement? More time with family and friends? Traveling?  Spending time on personal interests?  We all hope to have a healthy and conformable retirement doing the things we love – and that takes planning.

For women, it can take even more planning. That’s because while women have more opportunities than ever before, they often face unique obstacles that can make saving for retirement a challenge. Women generally live longer than men, which means they might need to stretch their retirement dollars further.

In addition, women generally have lower lifetime earnings, which can have a significant impact on their retirement savings, social security benefits and pensions.

The good news is that you hold the key to your own financial success. Here are three steps every woman should take to plan for retirement:

1. Estimate how much annual income you’ll need in retirement. (Use this retirement calculator.)  Try to list all your expenses and think about how those expenses will change over time as you transition in to retirement.
2. Find out how much income you might expect from Social Security and/or an employer pension. Your Social Security statement will show your estimated monthly retirement benefit at different retirement ages based on your current earnings record.  You can access your statement online at the Social Security website (ssa.gov)
3. Look at the gap between your estimated retirement expenses and your expected Social Security and pension income.  Any gap will need to be funded with your own personal savings and investments.  For women, that can be challenging. Women tend to spen fewer years in the workforce and often earn less than men.

Funding the Gap

The number one thing you can do is start saving now. Set a savings goal that you can work toward and keep track of your progress. If you are in the workforce, a good place to start is your employer’s retirement plan such as a 401K.  Your contributions cone directly out of your paycheck and are deposited into your retirement account automatically, so it’s like putting your retirement savings on auto-pilot. If you need additional savings options consider an IRA. 

As you save keep your eye on the prize – a financially comfortable retirement.  While there might be a few bumps along the way, saving as much as you can now and knowing what you can expect from Social Security, could help you get there.

 

 

IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES

Material contained in this article is provided for information purposes only and is not intended to be used in connection with the evaluation of any investments offered by David Lerner Associates, Inc. This material does not constitute an offer or recommendation to buy or sell securities and should not be considered in connection with the purchase or sale of securities.

To the extent that this material concerns tax matters, it is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by a taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed by law. Each taxpayer should seek independent advice from a tax professional based on his or her individual circumstances.

These materials are provided for general information and educational purposes based upon publicly available information from sources believed to be reliable– we cannot assure the accuracy or completeness of these materials. The information in these materials may change at any time and without notice.

Some of this material has been provided by Broadridge Investor Communications Solutions, Inc.

David Lerner Associates does not provide tax or legal advice. The information presented here is not specific to any individual’s personal circumstances.
Member FINRA & SIPC.