{"id":2758,"date":"2013-03-12T06:59:56","date_gmt":"2013-03-12T10:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=2758"},"modified":"2013-03-12T07:07:35","modified_gmt":"2013-03-12T11:07:35","slug":"and-now-a-cheery-view-of-women-and-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=2758","title":{"rendered":"And Now, a Cheery View of Women and Retirement"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Pamela<\/a>
Pamela Everhart, senior vice president of retirement policy development and market planning for Fidelity Investments in Boston. Photo courtesy of Fidelity Investments<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s a rare day when you run across someone who says the retirement future for women isn\u2019t bleak.<\/p>\n

Meet Pamela Everhart, senior vice president of retirement policy development and market planning for Fidelity Investments in Boston.<\/p>\n

Everhart, a featured speaker at the recent\u00a0WISER<\/a>\u00a0(Women\u2019s Institute for a Secure Retirement) symposium on women and retirement in Washington, D.C., doesn’t share the conventional view held by many financial advisers (and me) that, compared to men,\u00a0women face serious struggles to ensure a comfortable retirement<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Why Everhart Is So Cheery<\/strong><\/p>\n

Everhart makes an optimistic case for the retirement prospects of women \u2014 especially those with 401(k) employer-sponsored savings plans.<\/p>\n

(MORE:<\/strong>\u00a0Mothers, Teach Your Daughters to Save for Retirement<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Yes, Everhart recognizes that women typically earn two-thirds of what men do, are less likely to be in high-paying executive positions and have smaller retirement balances than their male counterparts \u2014 $62,000 vs. $84,000, on average, she says.<\/p>\n

But based on Fidelity\u2019s research, she says, women have plenty going for them because they\u2019re generally better investors than men.<\/p>\n

\u201cOverall, women achieve roughly the same investment returns as men, but take on less risk,\u201d she explains. \u201cWomen tend to have a more balanced portfolio than men, which is beneficial, especially during times of extreme market volatility.\u201d<\/p>\n

Men\u2019s Portfolios Are More \u2018Extreme\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to Everhart, men are more likely to have what she calls \u201cextreme portfolios,\u201d holding as much as 100 percent of their assets in stocks and higher 401(k) allocations in their company stock than women. (Keeping a large chunk of your retirement money in company stock is risky because the lack of diversification means your financial future could be in jeopardy if that holding takes a tumble.)<\/p>\n

Everhart\u2019s 401(k) data shows that roughly 28 percent of women invest in a blend of stocks and bonds in their plans, compared to only 23 percent of men.<\/p>\n

Moreover, Everhart says, women also tend to stay the course; unlike men, they\u2019re less likely to trade frequently with their 401(k) plans. By her definition, this makes women better savers and smarter investors.<\/p>\n

Women Save More Than Men (With an Asterisk)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Simply put, when you adjust for compensation, women save more than men, she reports \u2014 12.8 percent of their paycheck compared to 12 percent for men. They also have bigger account balances, when you control for compensation differences.<\/p>\n

(MORE:<\/strong>\u00a0Hillary Clinton and Women\u2019s Retirement Anxiety<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Everhart offers two more reasons for her optimistic outlook:<\/p>\n