Publications

WISER’s publications and fact sheets are available to download and print for personal and individual use onlyNo part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or storage or retrieval system without the prior written permission of the Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement and by specifying the exact nature of the use, including form of distribution. If you would like multiple copies for distribution, please contact WISER.  

To request a publication order or for pricing information, email: info@wiserwomen.org, or call 202-393-5452.

Spanish Going It Alone - Guia Para Viudas Widow's Guide

Going It Alone—A Guide for Widows: 5 Steps for Navigating the Financial Challenges
Publication updated in 2023

WISER, in partnership with the Administration for Community Living’s Administration on Aging, operates the National Resource Center on Women and Retirement  as a national clearinghouse of tools and information on retirement planning.  The goal of the Center is to provide financial workshops and create a variety of consumer publications such as this one, that explain in easy-to-understand language complex issues. 

This guide covers five important steps widows should take:

  1. Identifying Sources of Income 
  2. Getting the Documents and Making a New Household Budget
  3. Evaluating Choices for Health Care and Long-term Care Coverage
  4. Making Your Money Last a Lifetime 
  5. Evaluating Housing Options

Spanish translation available here:  WISER’s Guía Para Viudas

Your Future Paycheck®: Pay, Social Security, Retirement Plans, Savings and Investments
Minority Women and Retirement Income
Publication updated in 2021

WISER’s report, published in conjunction with National Caucus and Center on Black Aging, Inc., and MANA, A National Latina Organization, demonstrates the many challenges minority women face when it comes to a secure retirement. The report contains data and highlights the need for long-term planning and financial education for women most at-risk for poverty in old age.

Divorce and Retirement: Take Control of Retirement Benefits

Publication updated in 2020

Because pension and retirement benefits are not automatically split in a divorce, this short, common-sense guide emphasizes the importance of these benefits and offers valuable information on marital property, negotiating an agreement, and getting a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO).  

Financial Steps for Caregivers: What You Need to Know About Protecting Your Money and Retirement
Publication updated in 2022

This guide looks at the financial challenges facing today’s family caregiver and provides information, tips and resources for helping caregivers keep their own finances on track while caring for someone else.  Included in the guide is a budget worksheet that factors in many of the out-of-pocket costs of care.

Available in Spanish (published 2022)

WISERWoman Newsletter 
Caregiver Today, Retirement – Ever?

When planning for the future, one issue that may not immediate come to mind is the financial impact of caregiving. Many women expect to care for someone at some point in their lives if they haven’t already. But far fewer have planned for that time. This newsletter will help you think through those issues and provide you with steps you can take now to protect yourself financially. Also, this issue covers some important Social Security topics.

WISERWoman Newsletter Archives

Seven Life-Defining Financial Decisions 
Publication updated in 2015

This booklet is a joint project of WISER and The Actuarial Foundation. Everyone faces key financial decisions – from careers and marriage to savings and investments – that will affect the resources they have to enjoy their lives and retirement. This guide provides a roadmap for avoiding life’s ditches and dead ends and safely navigating to a financially secure retirement.

This publication is also available in Spanish (published in 2004).

 

8 Financial Steps for Caregivers
Published in 2014

Working with WISER, Transamerica developed 8 Financial Steps for Caregivers. This booklet provides information, tips, and resources to help you protect your money and retirement while you take care of your loved one.

Click here to see additional caregiver research from Transamerica Institute.

 

A Simple Guide to What Everyone Needs to Know About Money & Retirement
Publication updated in 2014

This guide provides key information needed to understand the different sources of retirement income, as well as the basics of saving and investing. An earlier version of this booklet appeared in Good Housekeeping Magazine.

This publication was also published in 2008 in Spanish, and 1998 in Portuguese, Korean, and Vietnamese.

22 Ways to Take Advantage of Your Company Benefits Plan
Published 2020

For many Americans, health and retirement plans are just part of a broad range of offerings through work. This brochure highlights how workers can make the most of the range of benefits that may be available to them – especially voluntary benefits. It includes 22 ideas on how to get more from your company benefits package to help you save time and money, and to protect what is important to you.

Don’t Run With Your Retirement Money: Understanding Your Resources and How Best to Use Them
Published in 2008

This booklet is a joint project of WISER and The Actuarial Foundation. It includes practical insights on dealing with lump sum distributions, annuities, self-managed investing, and accounting for taxes.

Making Your Money Last for a Lifetime: Why You Need to Know About Annuities
Published in 2008

This booklet is a joint project of WISER and The Actuarial Foundation. Annuities can be a complex financial product, but as one of only a few options for providing guaranteed lifetime income, it is important to understand how they work. This guide explains annuities in simple language in order to help you decide if one is right for you.

Sonja Meets Her Future Self

This children’s book was developed in collaboration with the Wyoming Retirement System. Sonja, a young girl, travels forward in time and meets future versions of herself to learn the importance of saving and what it means to be retired. This booklet provides a multi-generational look at retirement planning and the valuable lesson of Save, Spend and Give. It can be used in elementary school classrooms or simply shared with the children in your life.

Watch a video of Sonja’s story.

 

What Women Need To Know About Retirement (E-book)
Published in 2007

WISER, in conjunction with the Heinz Family Foundation, published the e-book, What Women Need to Know About Retirement. Chapters include:

Chapter 1: Women and Retirement Income
Chapter 2: A Lifetime Money Plan
Chapter 3: Understanding Stocks, Bonds, and Investing in Financial markets
Chapter 4: Six Things You Need to Know About Social Security
Chapter 5: Prescription for Your Health Care Future
Chapter 6: Where Will Your Retirement Money Come From
Chapter 7: When the Unthinkable Happens    

 

Fact Sheet Library

Visit WISER’s extensive Fact Sheet Library for more information and resources on financial and retirement planning topics.

Click to access the login or register cheese
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