Cecily O'Connor
RedwoodAge.com

When it comes to retirement, women are at greater risk than men of living in poverty as they age, a new report found.

One in five single women age 65 or older lives in poverty, according to the Women's Institute for a Secure Retirement (WISER). 

While amassing savings is a financial challenge all it's own, the more pressing hurdle for women is how to continue growing and preserving the assets once retirement hits. The potential for more Americans to live in poverty is looming large as millions of boomers inch toward retirement and prepare to collect a Social Security check - of which the median amount is close to the Federal Poverty Line.

"Women are at real risk of living a life of poverty in their older years," said Cindy Hounsell, president of WISER.

With this in mind, retirement experts convened by WISER met in Washington to identify the appropriate role of government, employers, the financial services industry, families and women in making sure women's income lasts as long as they do. As part of the discussion, they considered retirement security from several angles, including Social Security, tax code and other legislative provisions that could spur coverage and benefits, employer-sponsored retirement programs, individual savings, health care, long-term care and financial products. 

Stretching What's Left
Women's financial vulnerabilities stem from multiple factors. As a group, they tend to live longer, earn less, and take time away from paid work to care for families, which results in less retirement savings.

"With workers losing so much of their retirement savings to our volatile economy over the past year, being able to stretch what's left over a lifetime is even more important," Hounsell said.

At the core, people aren't saving enough, they're not investing intelligently, and they generally aren't going to have enough money to live 30 years or more in retirement. These trends are more pronounced among women. Consider that women at age 65 are expected to live, on average, another 20 years - which is four years longer than men. Many ladies will spend some of their retirement years alone due to widowhood or divorce.

Nearly 40 percent of older women living alone depend on Social Security for almost all their income, and more than half would be living in poverty if it were not for their Social Security benefits. Also concerning is that less than half of today's working women have access to a pension of retirement savings plan at work.

Retirement experts are expected to reconvene in December to further discuss viable retirement solutions for women.