Retirees are More Frugal Than You Might Think
07/23/2018
With all the red flags being raised about retirement age Boomers saving inadequately and running out of money, it is comforting to read something positive about the frugality of retirees. Richard Eisenberg, Managing Editor of NextAvenue.org, a great resource for Boomers, reports on recent research by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and the Society of Actuaries (SOA).
EBRI looked at three groups of retirees: Those who retired with non-housing assets of $200,000 or less, from $200,000 to $500,000, and $500,000 or more. The third group, with the most assets, spent only about 12 percent of their assets after 19 to 20 years of retirement. The other two groups spent from 24 to 27 percent of assets during the same time period. These percentages suggest that retirees are more frugal than you might think. About one-third of all retirees actually had more assets after 18 years than when they first retired. However, 35 percent of retirees with $200,000 or less to begin with had less than 20 percent of their assets left after 18 years.
An SOA study of retirees over the age of 85 was also encouraging. Although it was limited to focus groups and not a quantitative survey, the study indicated that the majority of these retirees spent less than their income. Two looming concerns may play a large role in why retirees are watching their pennies. A 2017 study by the SOA indicated that more than half of retirees are worried about (1) healthcare costs and (2) long-term care costs. As much as three-quarters of pre-retirees are worried about these two cost factors as well.
While the research suggests positive outcomes for many Boomers, it goes without saying that Boomers thinking about retirement need to financially plan for their futures, ideally with the help of a financial planning advisor.
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