The Importance of Financial Planning for Women

Women have risen to the top of male dominated fields, broken glass ceilings through incredible amounts of determination and perseverance, and now need to level the playing field financially as well.

According to a 2020 UBS Global Wealth Management’s latest Own Your Worth report, COVID-19 has only reinforced traditional gender stereotypes, with women more focused on home-schooling and domestic duties while men more focused on finances.

As a result of the pandemic, however, women are increasingly focused on their financial future. Yet, there exists a gap between intentions and actions.

Women often put off financial planning in their younger years to concentrate on other things. For many women, higher life expectancy, interruptions to their working lives due to maternity and a lower average income – sometimes on account of more frequent part-time work – also lead to pension gaps.

In Switzerland alone, 76% of women have stated that retirement planning is highly important in their long-term financial needs, despite this, a quarter of women do not have a pension fund.

GENDER EQUALITY

The UBS report demonstrated that 74% of men and 82% of women see joint participation in long-term financial decisions as a necessary step to create gender equality.

Despite this, women generally defer to their spouses when it comes to financial planning.

Part of the reason for this is the relationship with a financial advisor. Women who are working with a financial advisor say their male partner is treated as the exclusive decision maker, regardless of their income.

Single women experience similar problems of being patronised.

Women’s reluctance to trust financial professionals and the process of investing for the long-term starts with that experience of being talked over, not listened to, and not included in the conversation.

HOW FORTH CAPITAL CAN HELP

Women who participate in long-term financial decisions with their spouses not only increase their chances of financial security and reduce financial surprises. They also feel more positive about the future.

It is also recognised that women in a positive financial situation are often more likely to encourage other women to take on a more active role in financial matters.

Each new stage in life brings new financial decisions and requirements. You can take a more active role by:

• Talking to your partner about finances
• Understanding your current financial situation
• Thinking about your future financial wishes and needs
• Actively increasing and then maintaining your knowledge about financial topics
• Becoming a role model to other women and your own children about finances

That previously missed opportunity in women’s lives was a lack of understanding about financial topics, and not feeling like they could trust an advisor to help them in their decision making.

Once women find that trusted source of information and trusted advisor, they can create a financial plan that makes the path to wealth and goal achievement clear.

If this article relates to you in anyway, please feel free to get in touch.