Today, there is an article in the Wall Street Journal about single women and retirement. The article profiles three women:
- Retired higher earner with caregiver responsibilities
- Retired with no savings
- Retired to travel the world (no details provided)
Though it is not explicitly stated, I gleaned from the article that these women have never been married and have no children, a subset of single women.
Who is Single
“Single” encompasses several marital statuses: separated, widowed, divorced, and never married. Each category potentially has access to spousal benefits, i.e., spousal social security benefits, alimony, and/or retirement savings, except for those who are never married. Therefore, analysis of single women must disaggregate the data by marital status to ensure accuracy. Table 1 shows that most women over 65 and not in the labor force were widowed.
Table 1. Women Not in the Labor Force Over Age 65 by Marital Status, Race and Ethnicity.
Source: 2022 American Community Survey. Calculations by the Women’s Institute for Science Equity and Race.
Housing and Well-being
Of the factors that influence a woman’s well-being, affordable housing is critical as research finds links to health. Older renters are more vulnerable to housing insecurity due to increasing rents requiring a larger percentage of their fixed incomes. If rent is 30 percent but less than 50% of household income, that household has rent that is a cost burden. If rent is 50 percent but less than 75 % of household income, that household has rent that is an extreme cost burden. Table 2 provides the percentage of retired women who experience a rent cost burden. In general, women who were separated were more likely to have rents that were between 30% and 75% of their household incomes.
Next week, we will provide data on these women’s income sources.
Table 2. Women Not in the Labor Force Over Age 65 by Rent Cost Burden Status, Race and Ethnicity.
Source: 2022 American Community Survey. Calculations by the Women’s Institute for Science Equity and Race.
We Need Your Support
The Women’s Institute for Science, Equity and Race is committed to using disaggregated data to challenge false narratives that affect Asian, Black, Hispanic, Indigenous American, and Multiracial women. Please consider supporting our efforts to provide data that tells true and accurate stories. A gift from you will help us achieve this mission. You can strengthen your impact by giving a recurring gift of $30.80, which allows us to continue to advocate for more inclusive policies.
Our condolences to the families of the construction workers killed in the Frances Scott Key Bridge.
