Allstate Survey Finds Gender Plays Significant Role in Retirement Planning
NORTHBROOK, Ill., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- While it may not stun many
couples that men and women think differently, the second annual Allstate
"Retirement Reality Check" survey reveals that the majority of surveyed Baby
Boomers (71 percent) do agree upon one fact -- that they will never be
completely retired. But male and female Baby Boomers differ on many factors
that impact financial preparedness for retirement, including financial fears,
reasons for working, and even to whom they will turn for financial guidance.
Surveyed Baby Boomers have legitimate concerns going into retirement, and
distinct differences can be seen according to gender:
-- Women tend to be more worried (55 percent) about not having enough
money for retirement than men (48 percent).
-- More than half of women (54 percent vs. 40 percent of men) surveyed
expressed fears about Social Security disappearing.
-- Women (52 percent) are more concerned about getting sick than men
(45 percent).
"Women and men have disagreed since the days of Adam and Eve, so it's
certainly no surprise that they have different retirement planning styles and
worries," said Peggy Dyer, senior vice president of strategy and marketing,
Allstate Financial, a business unit of The Allstate Corporation. "What's
important is that both men and women identify the factors keeping them from
planning a financially sound retirement and act upon them. A financial
adviser can often play an important role in helping people focus on the facts
and numbers, rather than the emotion that can sometimes cloud the planning
process."
"Honey, should we stop for directions?"
In line with typical gender stereotypes, survey results show that male
Baby Boomers are taking financial matters into their own hands, while women
tend to seek direction. Almost three-quarters (72 percent) of men surveyed
believe they have the financial knowledge to make appropriate investment
decisions on their own, compared to 60 percent of surveyed women. Surveyed
female Baby Boomers (48 percent) are significantly more likely to work with a
professional financial adviser or broker than surveyed males (38 percent).
Seventy-five percent of surveyed men also feel confident they know how much
money they will need to save to have the lifestyle they want during
retirement, compared with 64 percent of surveyed women.
The survey also revealed that male Baby Boomers (41 percent) are more
likely to believe that financial institutions are not interested in having
someone like them as a client than are women (29 percent).
Time Well Spent
Gender differences can also be seen in how retiring Baby Boomers will
spend their golden years. Women surveyed were more likely (60 percent) to say
that they plan on being as busy with activities in retirement as they had ever
been with work, compared to 51 percent of men surveyed.
Of the 71 percent of surveyed Baby Boomers who say they will never be
completely retired, most women will work during retirement for the social
interaction it provides (69 percent), while most men surveyed plan to work
simply because they enjoy working (62 percent).
Surveyed Baby Boomers did agree on many types of retirement activities
that would fill their time but ranked their importance differently. Surveyed
female respondents rated family or community based activity as extremely or
very important. Other activities women valued more highly than men included:
-- Spending time with family (84 percent women vs. 72 percent men)
-- Participating in faith-based or religious activities (50 percent women
vs. 36 percent men)
-- Volunteering or performing community service (46 percent women vs.
28 percent men)
-- Babysitting grandchildren (42 percent women vs. 31 percent men)
The second annual Allstate "Retirement Reality Check" survey was created
by Allstate in conjunction with Harris Interactive. Using a random digit
dialing methodology, Harris Interactive polled 1,000 people born between 1946
and 1961, with household incomes ranging from $35,000 to $100,000. A sample
of 459 men and 541 women were interviewed as part of the total sample
surveyed. The margin of error is plus-or-minus 3.1 percent for the general
population, and plus-or-minus 5 percent for gender specific information.
The Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL) is the nation's largest publicly held
personal lines insurer. Widely known through the "You're In Good Hands With
Allstate(R)" slogan, Allstate provides insurance products to more than 16
million households and has approximately 12,500 exclusive agents and financial
specialists in the U.S. and Canada. Customers can access Allstate products
and services through Allstate agents, or in select states at allstate.com and
1-800-Allstate. Encompass(SM) and Deerbrook(R) Insurance brand property and
casualty products are sold exclusively through independent agents. Allstate
Financial Group includes the businesses that provide life insurance,
retirement and investment products, through Allstate agents, workplace
marketing, independent agents, banks and securities firms.
SOURCE Allstate Corporation
 back to top
Related links:
http://www.allstate.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/109885.html
CONTACT:
Laura Margolis of Allstate Media Relations,
+1-847-402-5600
|
