General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsNearly a third of savers have less than $1,000 for retirement
Most Americans know they should be saving more, but few of them are actually making plans to do it.
Twenty-eight percent of workers have less than $1,000 in savings that could be applied toward their retirement, according to a new Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and Greenwald and Associates survey. And of the pool of respondents1,003 workers and 1,001 retirees interviewed by phone57 percent say they have less than $25,000 in retirement savings.
That may help explain why nearly six in 10 Americans (58 percent) believe their financial planning needs improvements and 21 percent are "not at all confident" they'll be able to reach their financial goals, according to separate data released this week from Northwestern Mutual's 2015 Planning & Progress Study.
While a majority have taken steps to address that, 34 percent said they have taken no action at all.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/102606784
Hey let's cut Social Security!
Really scary.
And while there are plenty who truly are living close to the edge, what's equally scary is how many who are earning a decent income don't save a penny.
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)Not because they splurge but by the time they pay rent, utilities, groceries and gas, that's all they have left. They consider themselves lucky if they can go out once every 3 months.
RKP5637
(67,112 posts)Art_from_Ark
(27,247 posts)For a long time, I lived like that, and it was no fun. Especially during the Reagan Recession, when $5 in my pocket seemed like a lot of money.
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)you're paying $1000/mo or more for an efficiency or 1 br in a bad neighborhood.
And that's assuming you pass the credit check, have first month/last month up front money plus whatever the deposit is.
Art_from_Ark
(27,247 posts)How can anyone afford that? At least $2000 plus deposit to move into a crummy apartment in a bad part of town
Even here in Tokyo, you can get a better deal than that. And probably live close to excellent public transportation, too.
Demonaut
(8,924 posts)the premise and and conclusion are moot
FBaggins
(26,756 posts)Yes... I also first wondered about the impact of the audience's age distribution...
... but your reply actually highlighted why the survey results are entirely valid. You seem to be saying that it might be reasonable for one in three or four people to have less than $1,000 in retirement savings because younger workers often don't start saving until later.
The problem is... that's the mistake. Your situation may work out just fine... but the average investor hitting retirement age who didn't start saving until she was 32... is going to regret it. I can't tell you how many millionaires I know who never made six-figure salaries in their entire careers - but retired comfortably because they started saving and investing when they were young. The longer you wait to start, the greater the sacrifices that you'll have to make when you most need the income for braces/college/weddings/etc.
Starting at age 32 should not be considered acceptable. That 18-30 age group is the one that needs to be targeted with better information regarding how critical that period is.
FBaggins
(26,756 posts)36% down to 28% with under $1,000.
The survey itself is a better read than the CNBC reporting on same. The stat that continues to hit me is that over half of the respondents haven't even thought about how much they need to have saved by the time they retire.
http://www.ebri.org/pdf/surveys/rcs/2015/RCS15.FS-3.Preps.pdf