Surveys have long noted greater degrees of financial confidence among men than women. This confidence gap closes, however, when women receive financial advice.
So reports TIAA-CREF in its latest annual Advice Matters Survey. Conducted by an independent research firm, the survey polled 1,000 adults nationwide to assess their attitudes, preferences and behaviors toward receiving financial advice.
The following recaps 4 key findings from the survey:
Finding 1: Financial advice has a positive impact on women's financial confidence
Though women are less likely than men to say they feel confident that they have saved enough for retirement (56 percent vs. 63 percent), getting advice makes a significant difference: 63 percent of women who have received advice say that they feel confident, compared to 45 percent of women who haven't.
Women who have taken advantage of financial advice, the report adds, also are more likely to feel informed about retirement planning and retirement savings (81 percent vs. 63 percent of women who have not received advice).
Finding 2: Women are more likely to take action after receiving financial advice
The TIAA-CREF survey findings reveal that nearly 9 in 10 women (87 percent) take positive steps after receiving advice. Sixty-four percent of women made a change in their spending habits, while 57 percent increased the amount they save each month.
Most women who received financial advice also took these steps:
- 53 percent established a plan for managing debt.
- 51 percent set up an emergency fund.
- 64 percent changed their spending habits.
- 57 percent increased the amount they save each month.
- 53 percent established a plan for managing debt; and.
- 51 percent set up an emergency fund.
"We were very pleased with the actions that women take once they receive advice," says Sue Fulshaw, managing director of retirement plan product management at TIAA-CREF. "We believe that their increasing financial confidence levels will help women to sustain the goals they've put in place with their retirement savings plans.
"Our hope is that they will continue to check in with their advisor, whether it be in-person or via online services, in order to revisit their plans as their financial circumstances change."
