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Hmmm, my impression of the media's take on retirees is not a rosy one. The media loves to stir the pot, generate confrontation and controversy and get people going. It's what sells. No one reads or buys media sources that only print "everything is wonderful in the world". That's only thrown in to provide a "see, we're balanced". The meat and potatoes of any media junket is controversy . For retirees the captions are often about the haves and haves nots in retirement, and how it is somehow unfair and not right that some are much better off than others. That's life. It's been said a thousand times, "Man plans and God laughs", which actually is pretty insulting to God....
They like to write what sales; that is now they earn a living; plain and simple.
Studies that just give averages always make me a bit suspicious. There's so much more to the story than "average". If half the people have $1MM, and half have $0, then the average household has $500,000. No one actually has that amount, but that's what gets reported.
For retirement surveys, especially, I think it would be interesting to separate the results between those who retired voluntarily and those who retired involuntarily (for health reasons, unexpected job loss, etc.). My guess would be that stats on financial and physical well-being as well as personal satisfaction would be dramatically different between those groups.
I think so, at least I sure hope so. I've structured retirement for wife and I to retire well before 60 and to have a minimum of $9K/mo. to live on the rest of our lives without negatively impacting our wealth....this should be sufficient even factoring in average inflation. We can always move to lower cost of living locale if we needed to at some point. I do worry about getting bored and that I might miss work...just in case, I'm trying to leave on good terms with my employer.
I just replied on another thread to say I don't think C-D retirement forum posters are at all average. I suspect if you polled adults on how many retirement forums they frequent the median answer would be zero; in other words I doubt that even half the population is active enough about retirement planning to do much of anything about it. So mainstream media predictions may have more accuracy in the general public than they do to anyone reading this. If you are reading this, you are probably in the top half; if you post regularly, you are likely in the top quarter (yes, I know; some of you aren't, but I bet the ones that are outnumber you). So I always take these with a grain of salt. A very big one.
Studies that just give averages always make me a bit suspicious. There's so much more to the story than "average". If half the people have $1MM, and half have $0, then the average household has $500,000. No one actually has that amount, but that's what gets reported.
For retirement surveys, especially, I think it would be interesting to separate the results between those who retired voluntarily and those who retired involuntarily (for health reasons, unexpected job loss, etc.). My guess would be that stats on financial and physical well-being as well as personal satisfaction would be dramatically different between those groups.
I think you're confusing "average" with "median".
Very few people accumulate $1 million in net worth by the time they retire. Only about 5% of the population accrues that kind of wealth. Unless you work a government job or are one of the rare surviving union people, pretty much nobody receives a defined benefit pension. It's your 401-K/IRA portfolio, the equity in your house, and that's it. Most late-boomers are looking at a fairly bleak retirement. For Gen-X, it's even worse since even less of those have any shot at receiving a defined benefit pension.
Household net worth:
70th percentile for age 55 to 64: $333K
50th percentile for age 55 to 64: $144K
30th percentile for age 55 to 64: $39K
Unless you have a defined benefit pension coming to you, you're going to be eating dog food with $333K in net worth and your Social Security check as your only source of income if you retire at age 62. ...and that's 70th percentile. The "average" or median household has a net worth of $144K and no pension coming other than Social Security. They're screwed the moment they stop working.
I think the City-Data retirement forum is very much skewed by people who either have a defined benefit pension coming or who did it right and have adequate retirement savings to fund their retirement. It's human nature that if you don't have either of those, you put your head in the sand and ignore your impending disaster.
Given the right statistics, you can prove almost anything. I know retirees that have very little other than SS, and yet they get along just fine. For many of these people, they don't need near as much to live on in their retirement years. The house is paid for, they don't put many miles on their car, they live simply and have no need to keep up with the latest fashions. Sit and think about it, what does a person really need to get along; food, shelter, a simple car or bus service to the store or the doctor and usually some medical care from time to time. Put it all together, and its not a lot, unless you have to have the new car every 5 years, and a big house and the latest fashions, that is to say, buying stuff to keep up with the Jones's .
Excellent point The best things in life, such as nature, are free anyhow
Retirement is change and you have to make your lifestyle fit your wallet. It's always been that way. I never thought I would maintain the same standard of living in retirement. I would have to adapt and I have. Usually I have a good grasp on reality. I never thought retirement would be globe trotting and spending lavishly. Since I didn't expect these things, I am not disappointed.
So far, health wise, I am OK. Believe me, my finger and toes are crossed. Decline is inevitable and I'm just hoping it happens after Medicare!
Old age is the last big case of fear of the unknown. It would be much easier if we were born with an expiration date. As long as I am still breathing I will do the best I can with what I have. So far, so good. I am enjoying retirement.
Articles like this are grim. But most of the people I know are happier than they suggest.
Studies that just give averages always make me a bit suspicious. There's so much more to the story than "average". If half the people have $1MM, and half have $0, then the average household has $500,000. No one actually has that amount, but that's what gets reported.
I think you're confusing "average" with "median".
Very few people accumulate $1 million in net worth by the time they retire. Only about 5% of the population accrues that kind of wealth. Unless you work a government job or are one of the rare surviving union people, pretty much nobody receives a defined benefit pension. It's your 401-K/IRA portfolio, the equity in your house, and that's it. Most late-boomers are looking at a fairly bleak retirement. For Gen-X, it's even worse since even less of those have any shot at receiving a defined benefit pension.
Household net worth:
70th percentile for age 55 to 64: $333K
50th percentile for age 55 to 64: $144K
30th percentile for age 55 to 64: $39K
Unless you have a defined benefit pension coming to you, you're going to be eating dog food with $333K in net worth and your Social Security check as your only source of income if you retire at age 62. ...and that's 70th percentile. The "average" or median household has a net worth of $144K and no pension coming other than Social Security. They're screwed the moment they stop working.
I think the City-Data retirement forum is very much skewed by people who either have a defined benefit pension coming or who did it right and have adequate retirement savings to fund their retirement. It's human nature that if you don't have either of those, you put your head in the sand and ignore your impending disaster.
What ChiGal describes is average. Median is the middle ranked observation; median always exists. Average is arrived at mathematically and there might be no observation that matches it.
The numbers you give are another form that can be confusing. The 50th percentile is the median; the "centermost" ranked observation.
What I found the most interesting is that the average retirement age is 62, no wonder they are having problems. I'm a year beyond that and expect to work another 5 years or more to maximize Social Security, pension and 401k. My wife and I look forward to spending more time by ourselves, since we've both been working for our 41 years together. We have long-term care insurance, and with the equity in our home we expect to pay cash for a smaller one in a lower cost area and have no mortgage or rent, so no need to move in with the kids. No guarantees, but if our plan works out we will have the same or more money to spend than we do now, so we should be able to continue making a trip to Hawaii every couple of years.
Not all "retirements" are voluntary. And the age where that starts to hit is more like 50.
Very few people accumulate $1 million in net worth by the time they retire. Only about 5% of the population accrues that kind of wealth. Unless you work a government job or are one of the rare surviving union people, pretty much nobody receives a defined benefit pension. It's your 401-K/IRA portfolio, the equity in your house, and that's it. Most late-boomers are looking at a fairly bleak retirement. For Gen-X, it's even worse since even less of those have any shot at receiving a defined benefit pension.
Household net worth:
70th percentile for age 55 to 64: $333K
50th percentile for age 55 to 64: $144K
30th percentile for age 55 to 64: $39K
Unless you have a defined benefit pension coming to you, you're going to be eating dog food with $333K in net worth and your Social Security check as your only source of income if you retire at age 62. ...and that's 70th percentile. The "average" or median household has a net worth of $144K and no pension coming other than Social Security. They're screwed the moment they stop working.
I think the City-Data retirement forum is very much skewed by people who either have a defined benefit pension coming or who did it right and have adequate retirement savings to fund their retirement. It's human nature that if you don't have either of those, you put your head in the sand and ignore your impending disaster.
Lots of defined benefit folks and older Boomers on here. Yep, it's skewed.
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The best things in life, such as nature, are free anyhow
