Top 2 Retirement Fears

Americans in retirement and those soon to be retirees have serious concerns. According to the Reclaiming the Future Study conducted in 2011-2012 by Allianz Life:

Fear # 1 - American Retirement Crisis/Unprepared:

• 92% of Americans believe there is a retirement crisis and fear they are unprepared

When asked “Do you believe there is a retirement crisis in this country?”

• 92% answered absolutely or somewhat.

In the age group 44-54

• 54% said they feel unprepared for retirement.
• 57% of all respondents worry about their nest egg safety and it may not be large enough.
• 47% fear they will not be able to cover basic living expenses.

 Fear #2 – Americans fear outliving money more than they fear death

• Increasing longevity mean more people are spending more years in retirement.  
• 77% of all age groups worry about living too long.  So much so a shocking 61% feared outliving their assets more than they feared death. 

The market meltdown of 2008-2009 caused a profound financial rethinking for Americans. 

• 53% reported their net worth was significantly eroded in a very short period of time.
• 43% had their home values drop
• 41% realized they were not “in control” of their financial futures as they’d thought.

 As a result of this financial turmoil many research participants said they changed their behaviors.

• Cut back on spending
• More interest in financial news and studying the markets

The majority agreed- “That the safety of my money matters more.” 

“Asked to consider the features that would be most important to them if they could build the ideal financial product?”

• 69% of survey respondents said they would prefer a product that was “guaranteed not to lose value”
• Only 31% would choose a product that is not guaranteed with the goal of “providing a high return.”

Annuity-like solutions are gaining relevance and appeal.

For help you may ask questions in the comments

Or click here to contact me privately: Tim Barton Chartered Financial Consultant

 

Tags: business, finance, life, Money, News, Retirement, retirement planning, Tim Barton

This entry was posted on March 14, 2013 at 2:51 pm and is filed under Lifestyle, Longevity, News, Retirement Planning. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.