Consumers Underestimate Lifespan, Savings

The good news is Americans are living longer. The bad news is they will likely outlive their retirement savings without better planning. Results from the MetLife Reitrement IQ test show workers are significantly underestimating their longevity and how much they will need to save to last them throughout their golden years.
Although unsurprising to many retirement planning experts, the results drive home for employers the importance of comprehensive retirement education for employees. More than half of consumers believe they will need as little as 20% of pre-retirement income each year to enjoy a comfortable retirement, MetLife finds, although some experts actually set this benchmark as high as 90%. Consumers also are unaware the average life expectancy of individuals is well into the 80s, and the number of Americans age 100 or older is more than 80,000.
"Misconceptions about longevity can have serious consequences on a retirement savings plan," said MetLife Mature Market Institute Director Sandra Timmermann. "More than one-quarter of Americans who reach age 65 will live to their 90s, and risk outliving their retirement assets."