Women More Confident about Retirement but Feel Less Prepared Financially

MINNEAPOLIS - (BUSINESS WIRE) - More women report feeling confident about their retirement than in the past two years according to new findings from the 2012 New Retirement Mindscape City Pulse index by Ameriprise Financial (NYSE: AMP). One in four women (24%) report feeling very confident they'll reach their retirement goals and another 44% report feeling somewhat confident. Only 20 percent say they feel worried when they think about their retirement - down significantly from 25% last year. Despite this trend, the fewest number of women since the index began in 2010 report making any kind of financial preparations for this milestone (66%).

"It's great to see that women are feeling more confident about their financial future," said Suzanna de Baca, vice president of wealth strategies at Ameriprise Financial. "These positive sentiments may be attributed to any number of factors, but unless these women's feelings materialize into real financial preparation, they're not necessarily an indicator of how ready women are for retirement."

While women are as confident as men, they have some catching up to do when it comes to financial preparation. Only 44% of female respondents say they've contributed to a workplace retirement plan, compared to 51% of males. Ten percent fewer women than men have set aside funds in their own investments (42% vs. 52%) and only one in five (19%) have determined the amount of income they'll need in retirement compared to 28% of males.