American Adults Worried About Retirement Possibilities

Americans are worried and wary about retiring at the age of 65, according to a poll by Pentegra Retirement Services.

Almost one-third of adults who would like to retire do not know if they could and further do not believe they would ever be able to retire, with women more unsure than men, the survey results show.

The online poll conducted by Harris Interactive, on behalf of Pentegra surveyed 2,397 adults in the U.S., aged 18 and older. Among the group, 1,927 adults had not yet retired.   

Nineteen percent of the population who has not yet retired said they were positive about retiring at 65. The expectations for the age for retirement differ for different age groups, the survey showed. Adults aged 18 to 34 believe they will be able to retire at age 62; adults aged 35 to 54 estimate retirement at age 65; and those over 55, estimate retirement at age 67.

Young adults, aged 18 to 34 years, said they will need only up to $500,000 to retire compared to adults in the age group of 35 to 54 years who believe funds more than $1 million are required for retirement.

These expectations from young adults are “unrealistic” says Rich Rausser, Senior Vice-President of Client Services at Pentegra.

“Younger adults new in the job market are likely making a lower salary and basing their retirement thinking on where they are now in their life, but they need to realize that their cost of living and expenses later on will be significantly different,” Rausser said.

However, more adults are now thinking about saving for retirement. Majority of the adults, 92%, feel some part of the paycheck needs to go for retirement planning. Around 14% was on average the estimated contribution for retirement the survey showed.

Around 21% of adults with children under 18, say they have not planned for retirement and only 12% of adults with no children have no retirement planning.

Retirement planning with professional help is not so common the survey shows. Of the adults who have planned for retirement but haven’t yet retired, parents helped 28%, 33% were helped by financial planners and 28% received no help. Thirty one percent of the currently retired adults also say no one helped their planning.

Pentegra Retirement Services, which was founded by the Federal Home Loan Bank System in 1943, is a leading provider of retirement plan solutions to organizations nationwide.

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