Tips to shut the gender cash divide
The best thing women can do for their finances is to focus on the future, says rebecca O’Connor of Interactive Investor. they typically earn less than men and take more time out to care for children and relatives.
this can leave women shortchanged in their pension pots.
research shows women tend to oversee daily budgeting and shortterm cash savings while men take on the investments and mortgage.
Ms O’Connor encourages women to ‘engage with aspects of household finances they are not usually involved in, as long-term planning affects them, too’.
In the event of divorce or death, it’s difficult to get to grips with these finances at the worst possible time.
It pays to know where important documents are kept and accounts and passwords stored, should something happen.
It can be such a battle to get into online accounts, and this could be made much easier if couples kept each other informed about where money is held and what the account details are.
Financial planners Brewin Dolphin have founded a network called Wealthiher to help women take responsibility for their own finances and provide access to good planning and investment advice.
It helps to make realistic assumptions about what will happen to their income in the future.
For example, most women work part-time until their youngest child turns 11, according to ONS data — a huge drop in income during prime earning years.
Ms O’Connor recommends paying in more than the auto-enrolment minimum in the early years of your career to compensate for a gap in contributions later. early investment gives your pot more time to grow.
If you have already taken time out of employment and have returned to work, then make up for lost time. An additional £25 a month for someone who takes ten years out of work at 31 and then resumes work at 41 would generate an extra £20,000 in retirement at age 68, according to Interactive Investor.
Sarah Coles of hargreaves Lansdown points out that pension contributions don’t have to stop during maternity leave. She says: ‘If you stop before you go on leave, your employer can stop too. however, if you keep going, you may not have to pay anything in, as your income has fallen below the earnings trigger, but your employer has to keep up contributions.’
Women tend to keep more in cash, often with an eye on reserves needed for life events such as maternity leave. this can put them off longterm investment plans, according to Kirsty Stone of financial advisers the Private Office.
She works with her clients by encouraging them to work out exactly what their rainy-day fund needs to be so that they can put other savings towards riskier, longterm investments.
Small things make a difference, too. Female motorists are quoted hundreds of pounds more for car repairs, for example.
research suggests this happens because women indicate they are poorly informed. Bluffing might get you a cheaper quote.
there are also great ideas online on how to spend less. try reddit.com/r/UKpersonalFinance, moneysavingexpert.com and the Money Shed for top frugal tips. moneymail@dailymail.co.uk