Ah, retirement. The reward at the end of years in the labor force, of saving and investing and planning for financially sound, restful, and even adventure-filled golden years. Millions of Americans enter retirement annually, but increased reliance on Social Security income and Covid-19’s impact on employment, access to social supports, and mental and physical health have altered the retirement experience for retirees across the U.S. With retiree numbers significantly increasing in the last year and predictions of more to come at an accelerated rate, we wanted to know if retirement still lives up to expectations. Are retirees experiencing the retirement they expected, or do they have regrets? 

Guaranteed income strategies have emerged as underutilized methods to not only help people save for retirement, but also provide a stream of income to sustain them during potentially longer life spans.

The rapidity is which the economy toppled due to the pandemic was startling, to say the least. Coming off a record 11-year bull market, many retirees may have been lulled into thinking that their retirement accounts would continue to increase indefinitely. Suddenly faced with a portfolio drastically reduced in value, retirees scrambled to find a substitute for selling invested funds at a loss.

401(k) account balances have gone up 93 percent, nearly double since the economic downturn in 2009, according to the latest research from the Principal Financial Group. While much of the increase reflects a rebounding market, the study found a significant increase in participation and savings rates since the market collapse, with account balances rising 17 percent in 2013 alone, to an average of $54,000.

A LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute survey reveals that among consumers aged 50 -75 with $100,000 or more in household income, women are more likely than men to be concerned about running out of money in retirement (46 percent vs. 35 percent).

401(k) account balances have gone up 93 percent, nearly double since the economic downturn in 2009, according to the latest research from the Principal Financial Group. While much of the increase reflects a rebounding market, the study found a significant increase in participation and savings rates since the market collapse, with account balances rising 17 percent in 2013 alone, to an average of $54,000.

According to LIMRA research, investible retirement assets of U.S. households aged 55+ will nearly double to $22 trillion by 2020.

As many of you may know, I am intrigued with the subject of human longevity. I find it interesting to study why some people live long and active lives, while others depart this life earlier than planned. Certainly, in my own family, I watched my wife’s amazing grandmother who lived to age 104. My father, who died in June at the age of 89, drew Social Security retirement benefits for over a quarter of a century! What a life he experienced! From his youth during the Great Depression, to serving in World War II, and then following the American Dream through a 40-year career, Dad truly embodied what those of the “Greatest Generation” were about.

Although women are more concerned about the potential risks they face in retirement than men, a new study by LIMRA found that fewer women had completed any of the basic retirement-planning activities, such as determining expenses and income, calculating assets, etc. Thirty-two percent of women said they had done no retirement planning.

Although they face the prospect of living more years in retirement than men, women nearing retirement underestimate how much they will need to pay for their future health care costs even more so than men nearing retirement, according to a Nationwide Financial survey.