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Why women need to be well-versed in estate planning

On Behalf of | Mar 24, 2022 | Estate Planning |

Estate planning is something that all individuals should know about, regardless of gender. Men and women need to know what steps they can take and what’s going to be required. They need to think about how they can make things go well for their family as they move through probate and how they want to distribute their assets, among many other things.

But it could be argued that it is even more important for women to know about their estate planning options than for men. After all, when considering heterosexual couples, women tend to live longer than their husbands. This means that they may need to make final updates to the plan as they pass their assets on to their children, and they may have to handle all the financial details after their husband’s passing.

How big is the age gap?

While there are obviously individual examples of all sorts of age gaps and plenty of men who end up living longer, looking at the overall statistics can show you how the trends usually work. When you look at worldwide statistics for developed countries, for instance, you’ll find an age gap of about 7 years. Men tend to pass away around 72 years of age, while women tend to live to 79 years of age. 

In the United States specifically, women tend to live even longer, with some reports putting their estimated life expectancy at 81 years of age. Men also live a little longer than the worldwide statistics, but they still only make it to 76 years of age, on average, meaning that there is a five-year gap between men and their wives.

If this has gotten you thinking about making your estate plan, take the time to look into all of your legal options and the steps you’ll need to take to set it up. 

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