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August 22, 2005

Retirement Factoids

Almost a third of workers have not saved for retirement at all, about 40 percent are not saving currently and 45 percent have less than $25,000 in total savings and investments excluding their home. (Employee Benefits Research Institute's annual Retirement Confidence Survey, http://www.ebri.org)

 

Only about 40 percent of workers have calculated what retirement income they'll need. (Employee Benefits Research Institute's annual Retirement Confidence Survey, http://www.ebri.org)

 

More than half of workers expect to need 50 percent to 85 percent of their preretirement income to live on in retirement, while just 8 percent of workers expect to need "about the same" income in retirement. But 39 percent of the current retirees surveyed said their retirement-income needs are about the same as their preretirement earnings, suggesting many of today's workers could be in for a shock. (Employee Benefits Research Institute's annual Retirement Confidence Survey, http://www.ebri.org)

 

Only 19 percent of workers surveyed know the correct age at which they'll be eligible for full Social Security benefits. (Employee Benefits Research Institute's annual Retirement Confidence Survey, http://www.ebri.org)

 

22 percent of current workers say they'll retire later than age 65 to beef up their retirement savings. Thirty-seven percent of retirees said they left the workforce earlier than planned because of health problems or company downsizing. (Employee Benefits Research Institute's annual Retirement Confidence Survey, http://www.ebri.org)

 

For the last 11 years, the median retirement age has been 62. (Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)

 

This information was culled from an article by Andrea Coombes, "The pension mirage: Few save enough for retirement, so why the optimism?" Marketwatch. (http://tinyurl.com/cofrc) 05 April 2004 (Free subscription required)

 

This information was added to the Retirement Factoid page on 04 September 2005

 

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"One-third of boomers are in serious trouble. And another one-half of boomers are in between serious trouble and no trouble." (Robert Friedland, director of Georgetown University's Center on an Aging Society)

 

American retirees will have at least a $45 billion gap in retirement income in 2030 -- they'll be that much short of what they will need to cover basic expenditures and any expenses associated with nursing homes or home health-care providers. (Employee Benefits Research Institute, http://www.ebri.org/pdfs/1103ib.pdf)

 

This information was culled from an article by Robert Powell, "From nest egg to nothing: Outlive your savings? The concern is real." Marketwatch. (http://tinyurl.com/dl7hx) 03 March 2004 (Free subscription required)

 

This information was added to the Retirement Factoid page on 04 September 2005

 

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75% of Americans between 51 and 61 will experience some sort of shock that could affect their financial well-being - including a serious health issue, divorce, death of a spouse, or loss of a job.

 

More than 50% of adults age 70 and over experience serious health problems , including cognitive impairment. One in three women in this age group and one in four men will enter a nursing home while in their 70s.

 

There is a 44% chance a wife will become a widow in her 70's and a 18% chance a husband will become a widower.

 

Older Americans experiencing these sorts of events have a 14% chance of falling into poverty vs. 7% when these events are not present.

 

SOURCE:

 

Paper presented at the Retirement Research Consortium's seventh annual conference

http://www.bc.edu/centers/crr/seventh_annual.shtml

 

Found in Bob Powell's Retirement Weekly, August 19, 2005 (Subscription Required)

http://www3.marketwatch.com/Store/products/retirement_weekly.aspx?siteid=mktw&dist=LAtabstore

 

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Retirement fund assets invested in mutual funds in 2004 were $3.1 trillion.

 

All tax-advantaged retirement savings in 2004 - $12.9 trillion

 

SOURCE:

 

Investment Company Institute's annual report on the US retirement market

http://ici.org/pdf/fm-v14n4.pdf

 

Found in Bob Powell's Retirement Weekly, August 19, 2005 (Subscription Required)

http://www3.marketwatch.com/Store/products/retirement_weekly.aspx?siteid=mktw&dist=LAtabstore

 

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Nearly 7 in 10 workers say they plan to work for pay, either full or part-time, following retirement. Only 13% expect to completely stop working.

 

More than one third of Americans save nothing for retirement beyond Social Security.

 

Less than half of American workers think they are doing a good job saving for retirement.

 

SOURCE:

 

Heidrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University

http://www.heldrich.rutgers.edu/Resources/Publication/191/WT16.pdf

 

Found in Bob Powell's Retirement Weekly, August 19, 2005 (Subscription Required)

http://www3.marketwatch.com/Store/products/retirement_weekly.aspx?siteid=mktw&dist=LAtabstore

 

 

Kim Snider, Kim Snider Financial Communications, Chronim Investments and/or Snider Advisors make no representation that the information and opinions expressed are accurate, complete or current. The opinions expressed should not be construed as financial, legal, tax, or other advice and are provided for informational purposes only. Call 866-952-0100 to request the Snider Investment Method™ Owner's Manual, which includes a description of the Snider Investment Method, investment objectives, risks, suitability and other information. Please read and consider carefully before investing. All investments are subject to risk including possible loss of principal.

Posted by Kim Snider on August 22, 2005 | Permalink

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