Question: Our soon-to-be-retirees are sometimes unclear about how their finances will actually look in retirement. We are offering them financial wellness information, but it made us wonder about what we can learn from the Baby Boom generation’s actual retirement experience.
Answer: That’s the topic of an Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) annual survey and report, now in its eighth year. While the survey indicates a generally positive financial picture for current Boomer retirees, many are not confident with their preparedness.
Fifty-eight percent of Baby Boomers have retirement savings in 2018, up from 54% in 2017. Of the Boomers who have retirement savings, 43% have $250,000 or more, up from 32% last year. Still, just 25% of Boomers think their money will last throughout retirement, and 28% said they are doing (or did) a good job with their financial preparation for retirement. As far as who is doing the best job of preparing for retirement, the survey shows it’s those who work with a financial professional; these have at least $100,000 saved compared to 48% of those without a financial professional. Read more from the IRI report, Boomer Expectations for Retirement 2018.
