I am often asked why I have a special site/group/event just for women dealing with money. Here are 13 reasons why:

1. According to the average life expectancy for women is 81 years, compared to 73 years for men. (The Social Security Administration)

2. The average age of widowhood is 55 years old. (US Census Bureau)

3. Women are more likely than men to be single parents. (U.S. Census Bureau, “American Community Survey, 2008,” Tables B11001, B11002, B11005, and B11013)

4. Nearly half of women (44 percent) expect to retire at age 70 or older – including 19 percent of those who “do not plan to retire.” (Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies)

5. The median earnings for all women are $638 a week, compared to $798 for men–approximately 80 percent of what men earn on average (The Bureau of Labor Statistics)

6. The average woman spends 15% of her working years outside of the workforce caring for children and elderly parents compared to the average man’s 1.6%. (Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement and National Center for Women’s Retirement Research)

7. Nearly two-thirds of U.S. women ages 40 to 79 have already dealt with a major financial “life crisis,” such as job loss, divorce, the death of a spouse, or serious illness. (AARP, “Understanding Women’s Financial Needs and Behavior,” 2007 survey.)

8. In 80% of the nation’s households women are the primary decision makers regarding purchases. (PeopleSupport, as cited on www.womanmotorist.com)

9. 80-90% of women will be solely responsible for their finances at some point in their lives- mainly due to divorce and the fact that on average women outlive men by seven years (National Center for Women and retirement research)

10. Even though women have a longer life expectancies, when asked how much they were aiming for in retirement savings, women aimed lower, with a median goal of $200,000 versus $400,000 for men. (Retirement Fitness Survey 2010)

11. Fewer than two in 10 women feel “very prepared” to make wise financial decisions. Half indicate that they “need some help,” and one-third feels that they “need a lot of help.” (Financial Experience &Behaviors Among Women 2010−2011 Prudential Research Study)

12. Social Security provides over half of women’s income over the age of 65, 67% to be exact. (Social Security: Especially Vital to Women- IWPR analysis of the 2010 Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement)

13. The number of middle and upper income women struggling with debt has risen faster than the number of lower income women struggling with debt. (Women, Debt and Recession, CareOne Debt Relief Services)

What do you think? Where you surprised? Yes, you can still register to attend Worth It! The Money Conference for Women

Worth It! The Money Conference for Women is brought you by Smart Money Chicks™. The goal of the conference is to provide reliable Money Management, Investing, Career,  Entrepreneur, Savings, Credit and Retirement Planning Strategies for women of all ages, economic backgrounds, and levels of financial knowledge. This Conference is designed to address the unique challenges women face in a safe and fun environment

The Truth is:

• Three out of four working women earn less than $30,000 per year.

• Women earn less and receive half the average pension benefits of men.
• Women live longer than men, requiring them to make their money last longer.
• Women spend on average more than15 years out of the Workforce than men by caring for children or elderly parents.
• 71% of the nation’s 4 million elderly poor are women.
• Women tend to be more intimidated about financial issues, less informed about ways to secure their financial future and are more conservative investors.

Worth It! The Money Conference for Women will be held on Saturday, November 5, from 9:00 am to 3 pm at the Smryna Conference Center, 200 Village Green Circle Smyrna, GA 30080. The Smyrna Conference Center is conveniently located off of 285 and I-75, near I-85 and I-20 and just minutes away from Atlanta’s Hartsfield Jackson Airport.