The gender divide: men, women, money
Survey finds men and women of means handle those means very differently.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) – If money were an anatomical feature, it would probably look different on men and women. An online survey of nearly 1,500 high-net-worth men and women by PNC Financial Services Group highlights some of the key differences in the genders' financial views.
From the it-just-doesn't-add-up files, 68 percent of women said they shared financial-decision making responsibilities with their partners. Only 48 percent of men shared that view. And you can forget the whole female gold-digger bit. More women (83 percent) than men (65 percent) thought it was important for both sexes to contribute financially to the household. What's more, only 8 percent of women said marriage was a source of their wealth, while 53 percent cited their occupation as a major source. But if there were only one provider per household, only 1 percent of women said that they'd prefer it be them versus 32 percent of men who said they'd prefer to be the one. In terms of power-sharing, 65 percent of women versus 49 percent of men did not think that the partner who contributes the most financially should have the most say in non-financial matters. When it comes to risk-taking, almost one in five men thinks himself a risk-taker, versus one in 10 women. In terms of feeling financially secure, women say they'd need a median of $1.6 million. For men, the figure was $2.2 million. Of course, there are some financial matters on which men and women see eye-to-eye. Both sexes said health and the relationship with a spouse were greater sources of happiness than money. And half of both men and women said they became happier as they accumulated more money. And, finally, to those who say money is a leading cause of divorce, consider this: only 23 percent of men and women surveyed who have been through a divorce cited money as a factor. Meanwhile, about 70 percent of both men and women said the rarely or never argue about money with their spouse or partner. -------------- What happens when she makes more than he? Click here to find out. Money may seem like less of a problem when there's more of it, but marrying into money creates its own issues. See why. To find out how to talk to your spouse about money, click here. |
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