Comfortable retirement income gender gap widens | Australian Markets

Based on analysis from 2024, girls’s retirement confidence has dropped in alignment with the gap between anticipated and required income for a snug retirement having expanded to a median of $1,500 per 30 days.

According to the Brighter Super and Investment Trends 2024 Retirement Income Report, that very same gap for males was solely $1,100 a month reflecting a vital “gender disparity in retirement preparedness”, given the gap elevated by $300 for girls and solely $100 for males from the earlier yr.

The survey additionally discovered 71 per cent of girls making ready to retire have been anticipating to navigate a funding “shortfall” in retirement, up from 62 per cent in 2023; that is in comparison with solely 54 per cent of males anticipating the identical, up from 48 per cent in 2023 additionally. Only 22 per cent of girls respondents stated they felt ready for retirement in comparison with 36 per cent of males, and girls have been more more likely to retire earlier than deliberate (51 per cent in comparison with 43 per cent of males).

Brighter Super’s Head of Retirement, Jennifer McSpadden, stated whereas the analysis advised girls have been “lagging in retirement preparedness”, they’d taken “proactive steps to secure their financial future”, resembling participating with financial advice.

“Not contributing more to super was by far the most common regret among retirees, with 38% expressing this concern,” McSpadden stated.

“The survey discovered that taking motion after looking for steerage was a key driver of retirement preparedness. At Brighter Super we’re dedicated to bridging the advice gap to make sure more girls obtain the steerage they need.’’

The Retirement Readiness Index (RRI) was additionally developed as half of the Brighter Super and Investment Trends analysis, measuring responses throughout 4 facets:

• How pre-retirees fee their super fund’s suitability for retirement
• Pre-retirees’ confidence in having enough funds for retirement
• Retirees’ satisfaction with their super fund, and
• How effectively ready they really feel for retirement.

Australian girls over the age of 40 have been discovered to have an RRI of 51, in comparison with 56 for males, indicating that they have been much less assured about retirement total.