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without a breakdown by age and just what groups and from where where surveyed those facts really dont mean much....
some surveys are no more accurate then if space alians landed on earth , walked into a hospital as there first stop and reported back everyone on earth is sick.... suppose that survey was taken at the welfare office or unemployment dept?
data can show anything anyone wants to.... why just the other night i heard a commercial for drunk driving , they said 42% of all accidents involve alchohol consumption. i said to my wife see its safer to drive drunk as 58% are caused by people who are straight...
point is becareful of surveys and data releases
Actually, the Federal Reserve does a survey on consumer finances every 3 years, and the median level of financial assets that people have by age 65 is still pretty pathetic.
Then why do 43% of Americans have less than $10,000 do tdollars for retirement.
Because they don't save. Period. End of story. The evidence is overwhelming that people just don't save any more. Even if they didn't put a dime in stocks, if most people saved at least 10% in a 401K all their working lives and just put it in a "stable value" option which most 401ks offer, they would still be pretty well off, or "financially comfortable" as Jean Chatzky would classify them.
Now, Jean Chatzky is one of my favorite financial journalists/authors, but just about all the other financial writers, as well as economists from across the political spectrum, say the same thing in different words---Americans don't save and they're screwing themselves in a million different ways as a result.
The Difference: How Anyone Can Prosper in Even The Toughest Times
Almost 90% of Americans own a car.
99% of Americans own a tv.
40% of Americans own at least one dog.
85% own a cell phone.
49% eat out 1 - 2 times a week.
41% of American kids drink at least one soda a day.
72% of Americans play computer/console-based games.
50% of Americans over 12 and 75% of Americans over 18 consume alcohol.
I mean...who has money left over to actually SAVE for retirement?
People should this, people should that......The FACT is that they didn't, this is America and they are not going to be left to starve in the street.
Wall Street skinned most of their 401Ks and you and I get to pay for it
Boompa, you are really good at only telling 1/2 a story...the half that lets the average Joe off the hook and never makes him responsible for anything. You ought to run for office.
If our government is out of control and bought and paid for by a few elite banksters, whose fault is that? Collectively, it is still OUR fault because not enough of us have been diligent in monitoring the activities of our government.
Last edited by mysticaltyger; 03-16-2010 at 02:42 AM..
Even before the financial crisis, the average balance in 401(k)s for workers nearing retirement was just $78,000. After the market plunged, that average was reduced to about $56,000, according to Munnell's calculations. That's just not enough for a comfortable retirement, says Roger W. Ferguson Jr., president and chief executive officer of TIAA-CREF, the financial services company that offers retirement plans for employees in the academic, medical and nonprofit fields.
"Many families, at this stage, are short $250,000 from what they're going to need," Ferguson says
The above is from the link and offers a thought/perspective
78K is pathetic. I'm 39 and have more than that, and I can guarantee I didn't get it because of stellar investment returns. But, oh, that's right...I lived on a modest income and lived in shared housing arrangements until I was 35. I live in a studio apartment now. I have a 13 year old car that I paid cash for used (when it was 4 years old).
I've never made more than 50K per year from my job and I live in a high cost area.
And despite all that, I've managed to travel to South America 4x as well as fly across the country numerous times over the last 13 years to see family on the East Coast.
It's all about choices people make. And I'm really getting tired of all the exuses as to why people can't save.
I don't believe this is true. Most defined benefit pensions require 30 years. Some have a reduced time as the employee gets into social security ages which figure into the reduced payout due to age. The 20 year pensions tend to be limited to high risk jobs like law enforcement where they want to encourage the middle aged to get out plus the higher risk of never collecting due to death on the job.
I work in the public sector and this is true.
However, most people don't get pensions at all. Yet they still don't save for retirement (or they save very little).
you all are bringing up a moot point, you could and should plan around 95 as your target age.. theres a good chance alot of us will spend many many years in retirement ... for some of us it will be longer then our working years.... is that better?
Yes, that's better, but it's THAN, with an "A" not "then" with an "e". If you pronounce your vowels more clearly when you speak, you won't confuse the two words when you type.
How do i start saving when i have inherited debt my whole life from when I was a baby and living in a karate dojo because my parents were homeless to now when i was scammed and robbed last year of most of my possessions which really added up to nothing anyways really but it's always been something and there are many more poverty level people who just cant save for retirement....i made my own debt also by being young and thinking college was a way to get back to zero and start saving...i am $40k+ in the hole and still trying to be somebody...im 31 now and unemployed due to bad politics at work
Maybe you're unemployed also because you can't write a coherent sentence or paragraph
Almost 90% of Americans own a car.
99% of Americans own a tv.
40% of Americans own at least one dog.
85% own a cell phone.
49% eat out 1 - 2 times a week.
41% of American kids drink at least one soda a day.
72% of Americans play computer/console-based games.
50% of Americans over 12 and 75% of Americans over 18 consume alcohol.
I mean...who has money left over to actually SAVE for retirement?
And just to add to that list:
20% of Americans smoke.
an unknown % spend money on illegal drugs.
A farily high % are still spending $3 or $4 for coffee at Starbucks.
.....And we didn't even get into how people overspend on those giant SUVs and oversized houses.
Now, we all spend money on fun things. I totally get that. But at least 80% of us who are working CAN put 10% or more of our paychecks for old age. It's not that hard.
Yes, that's better, but it's THAN, with an "A" not "then" with an "e". If you pronounce your vowels more clearly when you speak, you won't confuse the two words when you type.
i dont get paid for my spelling just my good looks and knowledge..
why yesterday i couldnt even spell engineer and today i are one!
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