Calling All Females- Plan for Your Retirement NOW

I am slightly embarrassed to admit that one of my guilty pleasures is watching Bravo's Real Housewives series. Although I don't watch all of their locations (just New Jersey and Orange County... okay, and sometimes I catch a bit of Beverly Hills), I watch enough to feel ashamed!

One of the housewives (of Orange County) recently released a new book. Have you heard of it yet?

You can find it on Amazon. I haven't read it and don't plan to (I am not so addicted to the series to completely throw out my frugal ways), but a few statements from the description of the book caught my eye:

 "Women face a unique set of challenges when saving for retirement and building an income that lasts. With the Administration on Aging reporting that 70% of the seniors who live below the poverty level are women and the National Women’s Law Center revealing that extreme poverty rates for women 65 and older rose 18% in 2012, these unique struggles aren’t just a concern—they’re practically an epidemic."

Can you believe those facts? A few weeks ago, I recommended a few financial books and The Five Lessons A Millionaire Taught Me for Women by Richard Paul Evans hit hard on this topic.  How does this affect you?

1. Are you a female?
2. Do you know a female?

Chances are, you know a female that isn't preparing for retirement. Yes, even in our twenties we should be thinking of retirement and starting to build a little nest egg.

I keep wondering why so many females could end up in this position at retirement? Then, I realized that I could be in the same position. I have been creating our retirement through my husband (he holds the 401(k), we have a rental, etc.). So, say something like divorce happens (no plan of that), I could potentially be left with almost nothing for retirement.

As women, we tend to be the caretakers for everyone around us, that we sometimes forget to prioritize for ourselves. We need to be reminded that we are a priority, too. So, start planning and working towards your own retirement TODAY!