Women cope better financially with later-in-life divorce than men: CPA survey

With the divorce rate for those over the age of 50 having doubled since 1990, the increasing number of newly-single Americans near or in retirement is throwing new wrinkles into financial plans. A new survey finds that women are coping with the challenges better than men. Results of the AICPA's survey of its CPA financial planners, released today found that the advisers' female clients are far more likely to adopt positive financial behaviors post-divorce than male clients. Women are twice as likely to seek out a job (40.2% to 20.6%) and increase their savings (41.3% to 16.4%). Women were found to be almost four times more likely than men to improve their spending habits (42.3% to 11.7%) and roughly 14 times more likely than men to actively seek out financial advice after divorce (60.4% to 4.4%). The Personal Finance Planning Trends survey also asked the planners what steps would have better prepared their clients near retirement age financially for divorce. The most frequently cited were understanding how to manage personal finances (75.6%), understanding the long-term financial planning consequences of a divorce settlement (73%) and understanding the tax implications of a divorce settlement (56.9%). Also mentioned were updating wills or trusts (51.2%), increasing saving for retirement (50.7%) and decreasing spending (42.8%). (More: Two ways to boost Social Security benefits)