Same-Sex Couples and Sustainable Retirement Withdrawal Rates

Abstract

This paper compares sustainable retirement withdrawal rates for same-sex versus heterosexual couples. Due to convergence of expected longevity for males and females at typical retirement ages, systematic differences between same-sex versus heterosexual couples are slight, ranging from .03% at age 50 to less than .4% at age 85. Therefore, same-sex couples can employ conventional withdrawal rate recommendations with, at most, slight modification. Due to a lack of public data regarding mortality differences based on sexual orientation, differences in mortality expectations between individual members of same-sex and heterosexual couples cannot be explored. Members of same-sex couples, like all retirees, should adjust withdrawal rate expectations periodically to reflect individual conditions.

Keywords: Sustainable Withdrawal Rates, Retirement Planning, Same-sex Couples

JEL Classification: C15, D1, G11, G17