With more and more successful women staying single well into their 30s and 40s, planning for retirement is turning into a one-woman show. The idea of not growing old with someone seems like a real possibility now. The weight of funding this retirement rests squarely on our shoulders, and that can be intimidating. It’s time for us to start exploring retiring single.
All Hail The Queen
Ok, so here’s the scenario. You are already established in your career and have been faithfully contributing to your 401k. Some of us are even home owners, having given up on the idea of waiting for someone to provide their picket fence lifestyle long ago.
As time passes, with the economy in flux, you begin to wonder if you have saved enough to make it on one income. One more worry to add to your long list of future concerns.
This is a crucial point for women because she is proactively planning for something they didn’t necessarily expect.
My Thoughts…
I didn’t really start reconciling the idea that I actually might be retiring alone until my mid-thirties, but knowing what I know now, I think it’s important to consider that possibility much earlier as a single woman.
I feel this way for 2 reasons:
- You will be better prepared to take care of yourself no matter what direction your life takes you
- Divorce is always a reality and by being good with your finances you can protect yourself in the event that your marriage ends
Protecting Your Castle
A queen should always invest in her own financial health and stability proactively and that includes building and protecting her income.
Here are a two ways you can do that:
- Create Multiple Streams Of Income: If you have the bandwidth and time for it, side hustles are definitely a game changer for your bottom line. With the uncertainty of the current job market, it’s always good to have a backup plan. You can actually start an online business and make money from anywhere in the world. Having multiple streams of income keeps you from relying solely on one source, and then having the rug snatched from under you during a layoff
- Prenups: Don’t believe the hype around prenups destroying the romance. I call BS on that. I believe it actually frees you to move forward in your union without the worry of being ruined financially if it doesn’t work out. If you are a successful independent woman you have to protect your assets for your future, and in that case, a prenup is always in order. It’s also important to have a prenup in place if you have children who depend on you for financial support
Which leads me to…
- Will/Trusts: I’ve heard way too many stories of people not having a will and their assets getting tied up in court. A trust will allow you to get super specific on how your children will be cared for financially
What’s Mine Is Mine
One of the positives of being a single independent woman is that what is yours is yours. You don’t have to worry about splitting your assets down the middle. Once you are married for a certain period of time, in the absence of a prenup, everything is fair game in a divorce.
I don’t know about you, but I definitely don’t want my retirement cut in half. I’m just saying…
The No Paper Partnership
As a single independent woman, I think a no-paper partnership is ideal. One where we are partners in life but we hold our assets separately. This way there is nothing to “undo” if it doesn’t work out.
Now I’d like to add a disclaimer here. If you are looking to build a family with someone and want to do it within the institution of marriage definitely go for it. However, if you aren’t looking to have kids than opting out of making it “official” is always an option.
It allows you to:
- Share your life with someone without the added pressure of whether it will work out long-term
- You don’t have the pressure of having to be someone’s everything
- You can leave at any time
So ladies get your papers in order…it’s time to plan the Queen’s retirement!
If you have a moment, check out my previous post “The Girl With No Net”
https://herpicketfence.com/the-girl-with-no-net/
❤️ Stephanie
