Women assuming more financial power, responsibility, study finds

Women are assuming more financial responsibility, with 49% considering themselves to be the chief financial officers of their households, up from 41% in 2021, according to a recent study.

For married women, this has increased from 34% in 2021 to 43% in 2023, according to the 2023 Women Money Power Study from Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America.
Gen X women (54%) are the most likely to consider themselves the CFO, compared to millennials (51%) and boomers (41%).

This assumption of more responsibility could be driven by their increasing economic power, as more women surveyed said that they are the primary breadwinner in their family.

“As women are holding more economic power, it makes sense that they would also take on more financial responsibility in their families,” explained Heidi Vanderkloot, head of FMO distribution, Allianz Life. “In this study, we saw that women increasingly were both the breadwinner in their family and in charge of household finances.”

More than two in five women (43%) said that they are the primary breadwinner in their family, up from 34% in 2021.

More than half of millennial women (51%) said they are the primary breadwinner in their family, compared to 39% of Gen Xers and 37% of boomers. This has increased across all age categories from 2021.

Feeling more financially savvy

The women in the survey increasingly said that they are more financially savvy than their spouse or partner. More than half (51%) said that they are more financially savvy than their spouse or partner, up from 46% in 2021.

This more independent attitude affects how women manage their financial accounts and pay bills with a partner, the survey explained. About one in three (34%) of women view their finances as independent from their spouse or partner.

Younger women are more likely to take this view. While 46% of millennial women said they view their finances independently from their spouse or partner, 28% of Gen Xers and 20% of boomers said the same. Still, 76% of women said that they have made a conscious effort to decide on a shared approach with their finances.

More seek financial guidance

More women are also seeking help from a financial professional, the survey said. One in three women (33%) currently have a financial professional, which is an increase from 26% in 2021, the survey said.

For women who have a financial professional, 77% said that their financial professional is their ‘go to’ source for information. They said that working with a financial professional helps them feel prepared for their financial future and three in four (73%) wished that they had met with a financial professional sooner.
Many feel less financially secure

While many women are assuming more responsibilities, many said that they are more financially savvy than their spouse or partner, and more are seeking guidance from a financial professional, quite a few of them are feeling less secure financially than they did in the past.

According to the survey, just 64% of women say they feel secure, which is down from 72% in 2021. Married women are the most likely to feel secure (73%), compared to single (45%), divorced (54%), and widowed (44%) women.

Uneasy about retirement

Many women are also uneasy about their plans for retirement, the survey said. Just over half (52%) of women said that they are confident about their current retirement plans. Divorced women are the most nervous, with just 38% saying they feel confident about their current retirement plans. Meanwhile, 47% of single women, 56% of married women, and 53% of widowed women said the same.

So, what is causing this level of unease among women? “We asked women in the study what worries keep them up at night and their responses offer an idea of why they are feeling less secure,” said Vanderkloot.

“The top worries keeping women up at night were running out of money in retirement, rising costs of health insurance, and the loss of a significant other (if they are married or partnered). So, they are nervous about their long-term financial well-being and the risks that could derail it. Our overall consumer research has shown that Americans are worried about market volatility and inflation right now.”

To help increase women’s confidence levels, Vanderkloot said that financial professionals can work with them to develop a written long-term financial plan.

“A strong plan will establish a client’s financial priorities and set a path toward those goals. It will also include risk mitigation strategies to address risks like longevity, inflation, and market volatility. With that holistic financial strategy in hand, women will feel more confident moving forward. By doing the hard work to create that plan, women will know that they have a strategy in place to address those big fears., “she said.

Allianz Life conducted the 2023 Women Money Power Study online in October 2023 with a nationally representative sample of 900 women ages 25-75, with an annual household income of $30k+.

Ayo Mseka has more than 30 years of experience reporting on the financial services industry. She formerly served as editor-in-chief of NAIFA’s Advisor Today magazine. Contact her at amseka@INNfeedback.com. 

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