The press releases and research aim to provide information to empower those most vulnerable to the risk of outliving their assets in retirement. If you have any questions about your needs in retirement, please email info@justsa.co.za.
Financial vulnerability is one of the greatest challenges women face today. A woman’s life expectancy is three to four years longer than a man’s, and women typically marry men who are three to four years older than themselves. Not only can women expect to grow old alone, but most will also run out of retirement savings before they die.
Feelings are running high over unequal pay. But women fare even worse once they stop work, retiring on 40% less than men.
Dementia has overtaken AIDS to become the second biggest killer after cancer, according to the World Health Organisation, and there is no cure in sight. This increase in dementia highlights the need to make the right provisions in retirement.
We identified how much households in different income brackets spend on essentials, then calculated how much capital is required at retirement to secure this level of income for life, allowing for current tax rates.
Many retirees may be surprised to discover that the cost of a home in a retirement village is out of their reach and the sale of their existing home might not be enough to afford retirement accommodation. So how much will be enough?
Essential expenses are the cost of physical survival, covering the basic costs of living; accommodation, food and clothing, utilities, medical, transport and insurance. Latest figures from Statistics SA reveal that a household’s essential spending makes up between 65 and 75% of total monthly budget across all socio-economic categories, with only nominal fluctuations between income levels.