BALTIMORE – Maryland ranks among the top five states where women need to save more than men to have a comfortable retirement, a new study shows.
Women generally live longer and earn less than men, NetCredit’s November 11 survey showed.
In Maryland, women need to save $969,506 to retire comfortably, or about $364,337 more than men, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau and MIT’s Living Wage Calculator.
NetCredit, an online financial services company, compared the average retirement age in the US with life expectancy and wages by gender by state.
The findings showed that the additional amount women in Maryland would need to save would be equivalent to more than seven additional years of working, with no expenses.
NetCredit said about 4.1 million Americans will retire this year. About two-thirds of retirees live on savings or pensions, while about 92% rely on social security.
Of those yet to retire, about a quarter have no pension savings and more than one in ten over the age of 65 lives in poverty. Single women and women of color are disproportionately represented in that group.
On average, women earn 84% of what men earn and live six years longer. They are more likely to spend time out of work raising children or caring for aging parents, the study said.
Differences were found by state due to cost of living, gender pay gap and life expectancy. The study found that women in Hawaii had the greatest inequality, needing $422,897 more than their male counterparts to retire comfortably. Maryland ranks as having the fifth highest inequality.
NetCredit said younger workers also face challenges in saving for later in life. The average millennial has more than $30,000 in debt, not including mortgages.
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