Benefits February 2, 2011

Single Women More Optimistic about Retirement

February 2, 2011 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Single women are more optimistic than married women that Social Security will be available to them; 48% expect to receive Social Security vs. 35% of married women, according to a new Wells Fargo survey.
Reported by

A Wells Fargo news release about its latest poll of attitudes about retirement issues said single women were most concerned about inflation: 48% said it would have a high impact on their retirement plans vs. 29% of single men. Some 40% of married women said it would have a high impact on their retirement plans versus 33% of married men.

Twenty percent of married women are more likely than single women (12%) to say they don’t know or can’t estimate how much they’ve saved for retirement.

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According to the news release, other findings included that:

  • 70% of women agreed the government should provide a universal savings vehicle for those without a 401(k) (vs. 60% of men). Single women were most supportive (77%); married men, least supportive (58%).
  • Single Americans are more likely to have a written retirement plan than those who are married – 38% of single women and single men have one, compared to 32% of married men and 29% of married women.

On behalf of Wells Fargo, Harris Interactive Inc. conducted 1,756 telephone interviews of middle-income U.S. residents in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s. The interviews were conducted between September 9 and October 7, 2010.

More information is at a new Wells Fargo Web site on women’s retirement issues at https://www.wellsfargo.com/beyondtoday.

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