Study: Women fear retirement more than men

Women have three major worries when they think about retirement: inflation, health and longevity, according to a study released yesterday by The Hartford (Conn.) Financial Services Group Inc. These worries keep women up at night more so than men, according to the study, which was conducted in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab in Cambridge. They have reason to be nervous. Women work 12 fewer years than men on average, have less put away for retirement and face high odds of a long life spent alone, Stephanie Chappell, The Hartford’s corporate gerontologist, said during a panel discussion in New York yesterday, during which the firm presented the survey’s results. At the top of the list, 83% of the women surveyed as part of the study said that they feared that their purchasing power would dwindle due to inflation, compared with 69% of men. Declining health came in second, with 75% of polled women saying that they were “very” or “somewhat” concerned. Add the rising cost of health care to fears of poor health, and 87% of the women expressed nervousness concerning retirement. Sixty-four percent of the women said they were also worried about living too long, compared with 46% of men. However, advisers can help women get up to speed, not only by encouraging them to look at disability and life insurance but by encouraging them to seek growth in their investment portfolios, said Eric Waller, retirement solutions consultant at The Hartford. Women have a tendency to be “too cautious” when it comes to their investment choices and should be moved away from being “ultraconservative” investors to help build their nest eggs, he said. The study was based on a survey of 1,194 adults between 45 and 74.