The trends are clear – as women age the odds are they will be living alone, largely because of either divorce or widowhood.
What may be less clear for many of them is whether they are prepared for that life alone – both emotionally and financially, says Susan L. Hickey, a financial professional at Your Own Retirement LLC (www.yourownretirement.com/womansworth).
"Although both men and women could live three or four decades in retirement, it's more likely for women because they have longer life expectancies," Hickey says. "But they also often have less in savings, and smaller or no pensions, so their longevity can work for them and against them."
Almost half (46 percent) of women who are 75 or older live alone, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Community Living.
But women, many of whom are heads of households, don't always do a good job of planning for their retirements because they spend so much of their time thinking about the needs of others – their children, their spouses, their aging parents, Hickey says.
"They need to realize that their happiness and security in their later years can hinge on so many things, and not just their savings," she says. "So many factors come into play."
Hickey says some mistakes women make in planning for retirement, and what they can do to correct those mistakes, include:
"So much of this is connected," Hickey says. "When women feel that they have a good financial plan in place, they are more likely to feel secure and that's good for both their physical health and their emotional health."
About Susan L. Hickey
Susan L. Hickey (www.yourownretirement.com/womansworth) is a financial professional at Your Own Retirement, LLC. She helps guide clients, many of which are single women or female heads of households, on the many facets of planning for retirement. Because of her advocacy Sue combines numerous elements of retirement income planning through the use of insurance products, which includes strategies for claiming social security benefits, Medicare costs, long-term care concerns as well as traditional income needs. She holds her life and health insurance licenses, and has earned the distinguished Retirement Income Certified Professional designation.