The latest Retirement Confidence Index (RCI) results have found that women continue to lag well behind men in all aspects of retirement confidence and preparedness.
According to the RCI just 30% of women awarded a rating of between 7 and 10. The gap widened even further amongst younger women. Only 21% of women aged 18-29 years, 24% of those in their thirties and 22% of forty and fifty somethings expressed a high level of confidence in their ability to afford a comfortable retirement.
Commenting on the findings, Qantas Super CEO, Michael Clancy, noted that the recent celebration of International Women’s Day should act as a catalyst to discuss the gender disparity in retirement preparedness.
For those who are starting to consider their retirement planning there is an abundance of free information on topics such as finding lost super, consolidating super accounts and salary sacrificing that are simple and sensible first steps for everyone to take”.
A recent study by Stockspot revealed that 15% of Australians didn’t know how much super they have. People who have greater clarity of their current situation are generally better placed to make decisions about their future.
The ATO’s latest estimate reveals there is $17.5 billion in lost super. All Australian’s can quickly and easily check for any lost super via the myGov website. Many Australians have multiple accounts and consolidating your super balances into one account is easy and simple to do.
Australian’s often have death, disability and some even have income protection insurance built into their super. It’s important to know what insurance you have to understand your level of protection, the premiums you are paying and whether you need more or less insurance cover.
One of the most common questions we get from members is “how much super will I need to have a comfortable retirement?” Using calculators like the ASFA Super Guru Retirement Tracker can help you work out what income you are likely to have from super and the age pension when you retire. This information can help you decide if you should make additional contributions to super and how long you may need to work in order to have the income you want in retirement.
Contributing to many Australian’s apathy toward super is a lack of knowledge around how super works and its importance in providing income in retirement. Online education can help people improve their knowledge so they can make more informed, confident decisions about their financial future.
New research shows Australians of lower personal wealth have low confidence in having enough money for a comfortable retirement, with many seeking more information and regular updates about their super.
We interview a former investment specialist who is now a retirement coach to find out why retirement coaching is important and how it can help you.
