Women make up 40 percent of Americans with assets more than $5 million - and yesterday Caren Karpf gave a group of Penn women advice on how to join those ranks.
Karpf, a Wharton alumna, CPA and financial planner, was the speaker for last night's Women in Leadership Series lecture, "Managing Your Finances: A Workshop for Penn Women."
The event attracted about 150 students, mostly seniors with jobs secured for next year and with many financial questions.
"The biggest asset you'll ever have is your ability to earn income," Karpf said, adding that women need their own financial plans because they live seven to 10 years longer than men, historically have lower salaries and tend to take more time out of the workforce.
"Pay yourself first," Karpf suggested, telling the group to put away three months expenses into a money market fund.
"They're safe and liquid," she said.
She then provided in-depth details on 401K plans, traditional IRAs and ROTH plans. She urged the women to "take advantage of all the pre-tax and employer-matching plans that you can."
In addition to advice on establishing credit and securing a protection portfolio, Karpf offered investment strategies.
For young people, she described an approach that would place 80 percent of invested money in stocks, 15 percent in bonds and 5 percent in cash.
"Stocks outperform all other investments over time, and you have time on your side," she said.
After Karpf's speech, she answered questions for about 20 minutes, covering topics from hiring a financial adviser to paying off student loans.
In response to a question about whether it's a good idea to pay more than the minimum monthly amount due for student loans, Karpf said that securing a low-interest rate is a better way to handle the loans than trying to pay them off quickly.
"I would not recommend paying your loans off sooner," she said. "Rather, you should put your extra money into investments."
College senior Meredith Karpf, Caren Karpf's daughter and WILS executive board co-chairwoman, said she was pleased with the program's attendance.
"I knew the interest would be strong, but the turnout was unbelievable," she said. "I'm happy to bring her in to inspire and motivate so many of us to create our financial independence."
Due to the overwhelming demand, the WILS plans to make the lecture an annual event, Meredith Karpf said.
