Women are from Venus and men are from Mars - still.
The differences that divide men and women in many areas of life continue exist to some degree in finances as well.
Some recent reports show that there is still a difference between how men and women approach investments and financial planning for retirement. But the two sexes tend to be on the same page in a couple of areas when it comes to talking about insurance and teaching children about money.
Canadian women are becoming richer and are controlling more wealth. According to the Boston Consulting Group, North American women control approximately one-third of all wealth on the continent, and that number is growing by about eight per cent a year.
A study for BMO Bank of Montreal study found that 82 per cent of Canadian women are either the primary decision-maker or have equal responsibility with their partners for household financial decisions.
However, in spite of this financial clout, women still are less confident than men about their finances.
Men, for example, are more likely to have investments and a financial plan than women and men tend to be more engaged and confident with financial planning and are more open to taking risks.
As a result of a variety of factors including lower earnings, intermittent work histories and longer life spans, women tend to be less financially prepared for retirement than men.
"It's great news that women are controlling an increasing amount of wealth in Canada and are key decision makers for households," says Tina Di Vito, head of the BMO Retirement Institute "However it is also clear that women need to become more confident with managing their finances and preparing for life events such as retirement,"
Studies on the subject have found some other stark differences in how men and woman approach money and investments.
Men are more likely to save for the future while women are more inclined to live for today.
Women are more likely to worry about balancing savings for immediate priorities versus putting money away for the longer term or their retirement, while men are more likely to put money toward retirement savings and build their investment portfolios.
A couple of areas where men and women seem to be on the same page when it comes to money and finances are with insurance and teaching the children about money.
Men and women play nearly equal roles in teaching money management skills to their children. "It's important that parents take every opportunity to have the 'money talk' with their kids," says Alyson Schafer, a parenting expert and psychotherapist. Summer and other holidays are great opportunities "not only to discuss the value of a dollar but also to put some best practices into action," Schafer says.
But when it comes to insurance, neither men nor women seem to like discussing the topic.
A TD Insurance poll has found that 31 per cent of Canadians have never discussed life insurance with their partners.
One third of Canadians who have been in a relationship for five to nine years admitted they have never broached the subject of insurance, 17 per cent of whom had children. Canadians under 35 were the most likely to have never discussed the issue.
"Talking about insurance isn't always an easy conversation," says Dave Minor, vice president of TD Insurance. "It doesn't matter whose driving the conversation, the important thing is to talk about. Considering how integral finances are to a family's well-being, it's surprising and concerning to find that some couples aren't talking about life insurance at all."
Talbot Boggs is a Toronto-based business communications professional who has worked with national news organizations, magazines and corporations in the finance, retail, manufacturing and other industrial sectors.
