Financial Planning: Women & Wealth

When the memoir “Strangers,” about the emotional and financial fallout of a divorce, was published earlier this year, it sparked a national conversation about women and money. But these are subjects Jody D’Agostini has been focused on for a long time. 

D’Agostini, a certified financial planner, certified divorce financial analyst, and retirement income certified professional, recently founded Women Owned Wealth, a Morristown-based team of female certified financial planners. The team, which is under the umbrella of The Falcon Group, is focusing on helping women navigate—and grow—their money.

“A lot of wealth is going to end up in women’s hands simply because we live longer,” D’Agostini says. “A large piece of why I love this job is that I can empower women to take control of their finances.”

Women Owned Wealth, she says, is meant to be a resource and safe space for women to take control of their finances.

Planning the Financial Future

The sooner someone starts financial planning, the more options they have when it comes to reaching financial goals. Careful planning is especially important for women, as they tend to live longer than men. To this end, D’Agostini often recommends women take on more risk when they are young to grow their money and their nest egg as much as possible. “A woman might live 30 years past her retirement, and that requires a lot of planning,” she says.

Women’s careers and finances can also be more complicated than men’s, she says. Women tend to have many transition points in their lives, such as stepping back from the workforce to care for children or elderly parents. These times away from the traditional workforce can delay promotions, reduce a woman’s Social Security earnings and retirement savings, and more, D’Agostini says. 

“Women have unique needs and should have a solid plan for their finances,” she says. “And it’s incredibly important for women, especially, to think about how life transitions impact finances. Your financial plan should be an evolving document, and it should look at how your decisions and life circumstances determine when you should buy a home, where your kids might be able to go to college, or when you can retire.”

The issues are a bit different for women from older generations, she says. “For many Boomer women, financial planning was largely the job of their husbands. But they often find themselves having to suddenly handle their finances due to death or divorce, at times when they face emotional challenges, and they don’t always know what to do.”

Building Careers

Women Owned Wealth is an all-female CFP team because D’Agostini wants “to pay it forward. I want to enable and empower some of the financial advisors in my group and be a model for other women in financial advising,” she says. 

Of the almost 110,000 CFPs in the United States, only about 24 percent are women, according to professional demographic data from the CFP Board. “Women are underrepresented in this field, which is why this is so important to me,” D’Agostini says. “I want more women to feel confident going into this field.” 

Women are extremely well suited to being financial planners, she continues. “We’re great communicators, and this is a communication business. We’re good listeners, and we want to empower everyone to take control of their finances.”

It’s also a career with noticeable impact. “We are helping people reach big goals in their lives,” she says. “CFPs are very holistic in our approach. We are trained not just on investments, but insurance, retirement planning, estate planning, budgeting, taxation, and other fundamentals of personal finance. These topics require detailed and ongoing conversations with clients about their financial goals and challenges. It’s a hugely rewarding career.” 

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Start Young

“A financial plan should be an integral part of everyone’s life,” says Jody D’Agostini, a certified financial planner and founder of Women Owned Wealth in Morristown. “And it’s never too early for to start planning.” 

D’Agostini recommends that college graduates talk to someone about how much to put in their 401(k) plans, and that engaged couples ensure they are on the same page about budgeting. She often suggests clients gift their kids financial planning sessions as a wedding gift. 

“Couples should be having conversations about how much they can afford to pay for their first apartment, when they should buy life insurance, and when they should sign up for disability,” says D’Agostini. “It’s not all about growing assets; it’s about protection as well.” 

There’s a large educational component to financial planning, D’Agostini says. “Even if you aren’t where you want to be, there’s a lot of comfort in knowing you have a path to getting there. There’s a lot of power in finding the solution.”

If you can’t afford to visit a financial planner, there are other ways to educate yourself. “There is a lot of information on the internet that can teach you budgeting,” says D’Agostini. “You can also look at local community colleges or adult learning centers. I used to teach an introductory class that cost $25. You don’t have to go all in, but everyone should know some basics. Then, when you accumulate some wealth, which tends to complicate financial planning, seek help from a professional.”

For more information about Woman Owned Wealth, visit womanownedwealth.com.