Why Women's Financial Needs Are Different

At first glance, it may be difficult to believe that women's financial needs are all that different from men's. However, while the general principles of financial planning apply to both genders, women face unique challenges that translate to different financial needs. Consider the following facts:

• Women live longer than men (approximately 7 years), so they need to save 20% more for retirement.
• On average, women earn 25% less than men.
• Since women tend to take time off to raise children or take care of parents (women take off roughly 11 years more from work than men), they save less than men do for retirement.
• After earning lower salaries for fewer years, women's social security benefits are about half the amount dispensed to men.
• Between 1996 and 1998, 90% of women had certificates of deposit (CDs) in their retirement savings accounts when a more aggressive investment vehicle would have been wiser.

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