Australian women are living longer than ever before.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the average life expectancy for women is around 85 years, compared with around 81 years for men, although many women will live well beyond this.
While this reflects positive improvements in healthcare and living standards, it also means retirement savings often need to last longer.
For someone retiring at age 67, it is not unusual for retirement to span 20 years or more, and in many cases even longer.
At the same time, women often retire with around 25% less superannuation than men, highlighting the importance of careful long-term planning.
According to Paula Walker, Financial Adviser at Halpin Wealth, longevity is one of the most important considerations when building a retirement strategy.
“Retirement planning is not just about reaching a milestone,” Paula says. “It is about ensuring your income and assets are structured to support the lifestyle you want across the decades that follow.”
Planning for sustainable income
One of the biggest financial challenges in retirement is ensuring income lasts for the long term.
This is often referred to as longevity risk — the possibility of outliving your retirement savings.
A well-structured retirement strategy may combine several sources of income, such as superannuation pensions, personal investments and other assets. The aim is to provide reliable income while allowing investments to continue growing where appropriate.
Preparing for healthcare and aged care
While many people focus on the early, more active years of retirement, later stages of life can bring additional healthcare needs.
Around half of Australians aged over 65 will access aged care support during their lifetime, making it an important consideration when planning for the long term.
Thinking ahead about potential healthcare and support costs can help reduce financial pressure on individuals and their families later in life.
Balancing growth and stability
Investment strategy also plays an important role in supporting a longer retirement.
While income-generating investments may become more important during retirement, maintaining some exposure to growth assets can help protect against inflation and ensure savings continue to grow.
Finding the right balance between growth and stability is often a key part of sustainable retirement planning.
Reviewing your strategy over time
Retirement plans are not static. Over a 20 or 30 year retirement, circumstances, legislation and personal priorities can change.
Regular reviews can help ensure income levels remain appropriate, investments continue to align with long-term goals and any new opportunities are considered.
“Retirement is a long journey and priorities often evolve over time,” Paula explains.
“Regular reviews help ensure your strategy continues to support the life you want to live.”
With thoughtful planning, a longer retirement can provide greater freedom, flexibility and peace of mind in the years ahead.
Plan for the decades ahead
Planning for retirement is not only about reaching the milestone. It is about ensuring your wealth continues to support you for decades to come. A Halpin adviser can help you build a strategy that balances income, investment growth and long-term financial security throughout retirement.
This information provided in this article is general advice only and has been prepared without taking into account your own objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making a financial decision based on this advice, you must consider whether it is appropriate in light of your own needs, objectives, and financial circumstances, and where relevant, obtain personal financial, taxation or legal advice. Where a financial product has been mentioned, you should obtain and read a copy of the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) prior to making any decisions about whether to acquire a product.