Where did baby boomers go wrong? This generation isn't financially prepared for retirement

[Zorro]

Last edited Wed Jul 5, 2017, 07:25 PM - Edit history (1)

Retirement is right around the corner for baby boomers -- if they haven’t already entered it -- yet so many are financially unprepared.

Baby boomers, or those born between 1946 and 1964, expect they’ll need $658,000 in their defined contribution plans by the time they retire, but the average in those employer-sponsored plans is $263,000, according to a survey of 900 investors by financial services firm Legg Mason. Older boomers, who are 65 to 74, have an average of $300,000. Their asset allocation for all of their investments are also conservative, according to QS Investors, an investment management firm Legg Mason acquired in 2014, with 30% in cash, 24% in equities, 22% in fixed income, 4% in non-traditional assets, 8% in investment real estate, 2% in gold and other precious metals and 8% in other investments.

“They have less than half the assets they hope to have in retirement,” said James Norman, president of QS Investors. “That’s a pretty big miss.”

Americans across the country, and all age groups, are drastically under-saved for retirement. Only a third of Americans who have access to a 401(k) plan contribute to it, and previous research suggests the typical middle-aged American couple only has $5,000 saved for the future. Meanwhile, millennials may not be able to picture themselves in retirement at all, though are urged by financial professionals to make a habit of saving, if even only as little as $5.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/where-did-baby-boomers-go-wrong-this-generation-isnt-financially-prepared-for-retirement-2017-07-05

[greymattermom]

1. We'll do fine.

Living in trailers, now made fashionable by calling them tiny houses. We gave all our money to our kids.

[Hortensis]

74. I won't drop my standards. It's a mobile home or

our children's converted dining room.

Seriously, for 10,000 years people lived pretty much the same, with little change and short average lifespans. Since the 1750 and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, each succeeding generation has increasingly been living longer and in a very different world, and inevitably not been prepared for it.

The observation could equally validly be that today's retirees are doing better than might be expected given that just 30 years before a quarter of all workers died before or soon after retiring, most of the rest averaged about another 15 years, and insurance was a viable healthcare delivery vehicle since medical care until that time could do relatively little for the serious conditions that come with aging. Oh, and during their work lives the option of diverting income into pensions that was available to many when they started basically disappeared.

Now few die before retirement and large numbers belatedly realize they'll have to live on something for another 25-30 years after, and more.

Also seriously, not all kids of boomers are struggling. Most are doing well enough, many quite well, and that is security for their boomer parents. For us, it'd actually be our son and DIL's walk-out basement suite, not dining room. Unless we went to live with our daughter and SIL, who I'm guessing would probably prefer to buy a house to put us in. Or who knows? Maybe it'd be with a grandchild, helping raise the children. If remaining in our own MH became untenable. (We actually do happen to own one down in Florida with very pretty views and recommend it highly as an option--no tiny house nonsense.)

[leftstreet]

2. Inflation, cost of healthcare, eroded wages

But yeah article, blame the working class victims

[DBoon]

127. Pensions also vanished starting in the 1980s

The pools of money were "liberated" for corporate restructing, starting in the Ronald "greed is good" Reagan administration

[Demsrule86]

3. You do get that many baby boomers lost their pensions right?

[leftyladyfrommo]

6. That is what happened to me.

2 stock market crashes and losing my job at 57 so I had to live on my savings.

Happened to lots of us.

[tazkcmo]

33. You own those poor decisions. It's your fault.

The getting a job you would never had lost had you not taken it, the savings you saved you never would have lost had you not lost your job that you wouldn't have lost had you not taken it. And on and on, poor decision after another. The good news is you still have those GOPee issued Boot Straps so grab hold and pull!

Seriously, it's your own fault.











sarcasm

[leftyladyfrommo]

49. Yea. That job choice in my 20's set the stage for failure.

I went into mortgage banking. Who knew that all those years later a bunch of crooks would destroy the entire industry and cause the whole thing to crash.

So many crooks. It is hard to fathom the damage they did and continue to do.

[RKP5637]

77. And most of them get away scot-free and take their money with them. Same for CEOs that rape

companies for profits and then dump the companies and employees, and go off scot-free. We've become a country where crooks do well and honesty/integrity is falling by the wayside. FFS, just look at our president.

[DiverDave]

155. lost our house

Our 401K.
They sold us a "fixed" rate refinance.
6 months later they doubled it.
Told us to keep paying higher rate "we'll fix it"

When we ran out of money, they forclosed .
They did do a short sale...

Yeah, we did everything wrong.
Bottom line?
No house, no retirement.
I'm leaving the country to live off what little S.S.
I'll have left after the goddamned republicans steal most of it.

Yep, 60 years old and nothing but social security to live off of when I retire.

[Demsrule86]

183. We almost lost our house too...we did lose a pension but fought for a lesser buyout...lost our kids

college fund too.

[GP6971]

36. And life doesn't go according to plan

as we all know. Best intentions and plans go out the window and then we deal with it. We are placed in unfortunate situations not of our doing.

[leftyladyfrommo]

85. I did everything right.

I made maximum deposits to my 401k. I had a good financial planner. I should.have been fine.

[DBoon]

128. "My ambitions have come to nothing...

... what I wanted now just seems a waste of time
I can't make out what has gone wrong
I was good at what I did
The crows come home to roost
And I'm the dupe"

Gang of four, a group of boomer punks

[CountAllVotes]

139. +1,000 !!

n/t !!

[Zoonart]

9. Exactly

2008 was not our first recession rodeo it was the third recession or most of our working careers. Many of us lost our homes...our jobs...our businesses right on the verge of being unemployable because of rampant ageism. Now we are taking care if our elder parents who have out stripped their savings in nursing homes...so yeah... we fucked it up.

[CountAllVotes]

140. Sad

No thanks given to people like you who gave a damn and did the right thing and cared!

For those that think otherwise of you -- well tell them to

[malaise]

13. Add the devaluation of several currencies

to boomers in several countries

[dixiegrrrrl]

41. "lost" maybe..."stolen"..oh, yes!

Feds came out with the IRA savings plan, the one you put money into but could not get any out for at least 7 years, right?
So we socked away as much as we could in IRA/Roth, being responsible, planning for rtirement.
and in 2008, the "crash" came, but somehow while we lost everything in our accounts, the banks were handed millions by the Feds.
That same millions that we had been saving.

[RKP5637]

79. Well said!!! n/t

[greatauntoftriplets]

107. Many of us never had pensions.

[Demsrule86]

110. That is true also...first generation to be offered 401K's instead of pensions...the 2008

depression cost many boomers everything..pensions 401K's...savings.

[surrealAmerican]

4. When you look at how incomes have failed to keep up ...

... with raising expenses, you can see where boomers "went wrong". Throw in a few big hits to savings, and a few gaps in employment, and it's a wonder any of our generation can retire.

[AngryAmish]

5. Don't worry, they will just steal it from their children and grandchildren!

[NCTraveler]

7. Once their children and grandchildren move out of their houses. Nt

[Hekate]

14. Bingo

[white_wolf]

22. They'd move out sooner if they had decent jobs.

If you're going to blame any generation for millennials not moving out then blame the one that's been in power for the past several decades and gave us the likes of Regan and other Republicans. Or better yet, blame the subset of greedy 1 percenter vampires who are profiting off the misery of everyone, young and old.

[BannonsLiver]

35. I find even faint criticism of Boomers

Is like touching the 3rd rail.

[sfwriter]

38. and less student loan debt...

[NCTraveler]

63. My response was lighthearted at the other poster.

I didn't think anyone would actually bite considering what they had said. I'm never left unsurprised around here. Well done.

[white_wolf]

114. My apologies.

I see a lot of criticism towards millennial online and it's hard to detect tone through text.

[treestar]

68. Traditionally, old people lived with their children

the generation that came of age in the 50s didn't have to do that due to prosperity of the 50s and 60s. Now that's become the norm, or the expectation. Yet that generation elected Ray gun and there you have it.

[Warpy]

141. And you know how well that worked out

by how fast they moved out when Social Security came in and they could live independently.

[Kaleva]

8. In the old days, people had to work till they dropped.

I don't think any generation was able to adequately save for retirement.

[Hamlette]

40. My parents had a pension from my father's employment.

Those are a thing of the past. Some state and local governments are even defaulting on pensions.

[Kaleva]

61. My parents, grandparents, great-grandparents never had a pension.

[Skidmore]

148. Mine either.

And my mother never collected SS either.

[RKP5637]

81. My dad worked for the same company for 40 years. Had a full pension and full health coverage.

When he died, my mom got about 2/3's of his pension plus health care. Those days are long gone. I worked for several really major companies and they did not offer pensions, nothing. It was the sign of changing times. Then came the 401k. In my companies there was really no choice, all the funds sucked.

[tonedevil]

54. You say that...

like it's a right and natural thing.

[Kaleva]

62. Has any generation adequately saved for retirement?

The OP implies that the baby boomers are a bunch of screw ups and stand out because they haven't saved enough for retirement but the same may be true for the generations preceding the baby boomers.

[RobinA]

80. I Am A Young Boomer

and both sets of my Grandparents adequately saved for retirement. My grandfathers started out as lower middle classers who benefited beyond their wildest dreams from the post-war economy. They were not rich, but quite comfortable. They were able to buy houses, support their families comfortably, and provide well for the wives that outlived them, including my grandmother who lived to be 101. They had middle class salaries in the '60's and their wives did not have to work.

Me? I graduated from college in 1980 in an area where the unemployment was 10%. I've worked since two weeks after college graduation, but have been underemployed most of my life. I've been laid off twice, taking a significant salary cut each time in order to continue working. I've saved some, but certainly not what is recommended for retirement, because I have lived with one or both parents, as I never married. It was a conscious decision on my part, because my big fear as always been that I would end up on a steam grate. Several years ago I took a job specifically because it would afford me a pension when I retired. I am more or less stuck at this job until I retire in order to get enough from that pension, when combined with my savings (some) and SS I should avoid the steam grate and only my cat will have to eat cat food. Had I decided to live on my own, which I dearly would have loved to do, I would not have any savings at all, because I would not have had the extra money. I do not drive the cheapest car on the market and I do not spend my week off in the summer sun bathing in the back yard, but my car and vacation choices are pretty frugal.

That's this baby boomer's story. No resentment or particular regrets. It's timing and being in the right place at the right time. I've been luckier than some, unluckier than others. One of my lay-offs came when I was 48 and I was able to recover by changing fields and using retirement savings to get my Masters which has at long last made it possible for me to make a salary that isn't a complete embarrassment. My coworker at that job was laid off years later at age 60. THAT I doubt I could have recovered from.

So that's this Boomer's story.

[Kilgore]

103. What was your industry/job?

[RobinA]

118. Industries/Jobs

I graduated in social work but couldn't get a job in 1980. Went into retail and became a dept. manager (promoted internally - far less money than if they hired me off the street). Bagged that when stores started to consolidate (lose jobs) and became a paralegal. Did that for 14 years, laid-off from failing large computer company. Went back to social work (jobs now a dime a dozen), worked and got Masters. First job with Masters, $18,000/year. Had a series of jobs that paid progressively more. Laid off when agency lost contract. Steam grate looming, went to work for the state where at least I will have a pension. Currently have a job that actually requires the Masters (yay!). Would love to leave, but the difference in monthly pension payment between retiring at 60 and retiring at 65 is significant.

[Kaleva]

113. My parents, grandparents and greatparents lived on Social Security

Those that lived long enough to collect or didn't die before there was SS. To make it, almost all lived with an adult offspring. I'm 58, and on SSDI and get a small monthly disability payment from the VA. This gives me a yearly income of $15,540.00 which I can live on.

[Warpy]

10. Liberals went out of power in 1969, which is when many older Boomers

were graduating college if they weren't sent into the meat grinder called Vietnam. We've taken it on the chin ever since, from the OPEC crisis in the 70s to the resulting double digit inflation with wages never recovering to what they'd been in terms of purchasing power, the destruction of the safety net, the abolition of most of the tax credits working people used to get, to the continued 45+ year long transfer of wealth from labor to a few fat capitalists. We saw decent jobs automated or offshored. We saw unions attacked. We saw pensions looted and abolished, replaced with a stock scam. And we were outvoted.

We didn't get paid enough to save for retirement and we didn't get paid enough to send our kids to college. And now most of us have only our houses (if we'd been smart enough to buy one) with the tag end of a mortgage balance and nothing coming in but social security unless we're still healthy enough to work a patchwork of part time, minimum wage, dead end jobs.

I have to love the young financial planners who say that Boomers did it to themselves because if we'd saved $2000/year from the age of 20, we'd be well off now. Well, when we were 20, $2000/year was all most of us made before taxes. Younger folks just don't seem to understand what inflation has done to this country. and how far wages have been allowed to lag behind it.

The bottom line is that we didn't save because we couldn't save. We were robbed. And so are you.

[Bluepinky]

34. Since Reagan, the federal tax code, laws and legislation have favored the wealthy

As the wealth gap has grown between the rich and poor, it has been a lot easier for the wealthy to keep and even increase their money and a lot harder for the middle and working classes to do the same.

[TheFrenchRazor]

51. word. nt

[RKP5637]

84. I fit in this bucket! n/t

[HughBeaumont]

104. Ah, the personal finance industry -

A scum hive of brightsiders and bullshit artists that victim-blame until the cows come home.

How well you do in retirement has EVERYthing to do with how much you take home. Otherwise, you're relying on pie-in-the-sky, luck and circumstance.

[RadiationTherapy]

111. "We were robbed. And so are you." Wait a minute. Boomers have held significant political power

for decades now. What is this passive, "I got screwed now you get screwed" nonsense? As if Boomers haven't been running most of government and most of corporate functions for decades.

[Warpy]

120. A statistical norm is not disproven by a few outliers

If you think Boomers as a whole were ever consulted about anything regarding the running of this country, I want some of what you are smoking. As for being "in control for decades," we were not. It was a gerontocracy of WWII heroes and New Deal dismantlers and still is, in many ways.

Now Gen X is moving into power. Are you going to blame them because only a few conservatives are ever allowed in the halls of power? Or are you waiting for the Millennials? They're more conservative than the first cohort of Boomers, but you can relate to their ages better so maybe they'll save you. When pigs fly, maybe.

The truth is that you're powerless and your vote becomes more meaningless by the year as the same stiffs get offered as candidates and in some red areas, the vote is fabricated. If you were born rich, you might get to be the hired help and live in a big house with a pool. Otherwise, welcome to the real world. We were robbed. You are, too. Carlin was right, we aint in the club and unless another massive financial crash provokes anything but window dressing reforms that are overturned within a decade, your retirement will be as miserable as ours is.

[RadiationTherapy]

163. Obviously, Boomers were "consulted" about "the running of the country" every local and

national election.

As for the rest of your comment, it is a lengthy variation on the "we were screwed now you are screwed" passive nonsense I criticized to begin with.

[Warpy]

165. You mean like YOU ARE?

So where is YOUR big fix?

[RadiationTherapy]

166. I have to have a "big fix" just to point out that passive, defeatist language

is useless and insincere?

[Hekate]

124. Ah, Grasshopper, you refer to the 1%, do you not?

[RadiationTherapy]

162. "Grasshopper"?? Like I'm a student and you're a master?

I don't know too many people who respond well to condescension like that.

[Hekate]

164. Oh Wise One, the 1% has been fucking us all over for some time now.

Right?

[RadiationTherapy]

167. I'm not really into titles.

[Hekate]

11. Remember when Bethlehem Steel went bankrupt and zeroed out the pension fund? No?

I sure as hell do. That kind of shit went on all over the country, to the sound of the social contract being smashed to smithereens. It was all downhill from there.

[doc03]

30. That started with ST. Ronnie. Prior to RR pension plans were considered a liability.

Then with RR they were changed to an asset and companies were able to take over a company and outright steal
pension plans. Who was to blame for that? So called working class Reagan Democrats that put him in office.

[anneboleyn]

44. I am a GenXer but I remember Bethlehem Steel and many others screwing workers out of their

pensions. That was the beginning of the rapid decline in US manufacturing and workers losing their investments. The towns, and states, that lost these companies never recovered (the "rust belt" is no joke -- those areas are filled with empty downtowns and decaying buildings that have been deserted for decades). Of course it impacted all of us. The idea that the Baby Boomers are at "fault" for not saving when wages have steadily declined since the 1970s, companies have screwed workers out of their pensions, healthcare costs have exploded, multiple recessions -- ALL of us, including Xers and Millenials, are suffering.

[maxrandb]

12. We "effing" elected Ray-gun

And happily destroyed Unions and gratefully became a generation of bottom feeders.

Because, you know, of all the troubles we had in this country, they convinced us that the one trouble that needed to be fixed was that the average American worker had too much power

[WinkyDink]

16. "Reagan Democrats" came from my father's---the "Greatest"---generation.

[treestar]

69. Baby boomers would not have done that alone

The older generations and their conservatism on social issues brought that about.

My family of that generation were FDR Democrats but Roe v. Wade turned them into Republicans.

[WinkyDink]

15. Here's my standard reply to those who think we had, and have, it made. TIME, May 1971, my class:

?quality=85&w=280

[RobinA]

83. I Graduated

a few years later, but this was about the size of it. Hell, I remember when it was hard getting a job in fast food!

[WinkyDink]

88. My first, and career-long, teaching job (finally acquired in a mid-year!) paid $6,700/annum. $6,700.

The district's starting salary is about 10 X that now.

[Hamlette]

125. my first job as a lawyer paid $16,500 per year. inflation counts for much of that. n/t

[Luz]

17. We were, then my husband got sick. Now were not.

[hamsterjill]

18. Well, first, I had to take care of my aging father.

Then, several other life events. I've worked every day since I was 16, and expect to be working the day I drop dead.

[calguy]

19. I just retired last Friday

I don't have nearly what they say I'm supposed to have. But somehow, I think I'll be doing just fine. Between social security and the interest from my savings I'll be bringing in a little more than what my job was paying me. And I make my fun money day trading the stock market. So for me, just as it's been our entire lives, our day to day decisions determine the quality of our day to day lives. I'm feeling pretty good about the future, despite trump.

[bhikkhu]

25. I think so too, though its mostly due to frugality and good fortune

which a lot of people don't have, or don't have the option of. Like one post downthread, I was nearly wiped out in the recession, with a low-paying job and a spouse's business that went under after going heavily in debt. One way or another we worked it out, were able to keep our house (though forgoing so much else), and things turned around pretty well 5 years ago. At the moment I'm planning retirement, and I think I'll do fine and have some decent options.

If I look at the calculations saying I should have $600k in the bank, that's absurd, but largely because of where I've chosen to live, and because my house will be paid off. My fixed expenses will be about $1000 a month, which is about what I spend now less mortgage costs. Given that, I should have $100k in the bank to retire 10 years early, to keep me comfortably until Social Security kicks in. It helps that I have no health issues - I suppose that is the wild card.

[msongs]

20. america's corporations and wall street looted and stole the retirement $$ in 2007 - 2008 nt

[nini]

21. Being laid off in 2009 wiped me out

Then trying to find a job at my age took forever after that.

Then lots of us tried to help our adult kids who also lost their jobs to keep them from being homeless. Economic collapses do those types of things to people.

I am a lucky one.. I'll get Civil Service retirement and Social Security (if it's still around) but my savings are pretty low. I tried but shit happens as they say.

[phylny]

23. The only reason we will be okay is that we were lucky enough to have

1) My husband's pension.

2) My husband's 401K.

3) Social Security for both of us.

4) Health insurance, which will follow us as a secondary to Medicare. (We are both cancer survivors but our out-of-pocket costs were under $5,000 for each illness).

5) Stable employment (37 years with the same company for my husband).

Friends of ours are not as fortunate. Many of them lost good-paying jobs in their 50s and could never recover, having to spend retirement money to live. We have dutifully saved, but know that if any we were lacking in any one of the above-mentioned things, retirement would look very different.

[smirkymonkey]

24. I will be paying off my student loan until the day I die.

I only borrowed 50k, but due to a ridiculous rate of interest and periods of unemployment it has ballooned to $130k. I am on an IBR but I will never pay that down in my lifetime. I am actually hoping to die young. I only live to pay this off.

[mythology]

32. If you are on an income based repayment plan, you should be eligible for loan forgiveness

20 years for undergrad loans, 25 for grad school loans.

[smirkymonkey]

46. It's grad school loans.

But it still seems like forever. Why do I have to pay $80,000 more than what I borrowed? It's just not fair. With Betsy De Vos in office, it can only get worse.

[bagelsforbreakfast]

26. In short what happened was wages used to rise with Productivity...

Now they go to the 1%

For a while people borrowed to make up the difference.

Then, that crashed.

Now all that's left is a mass die-in on Trump's golf courses and Wynn and Adelson's casinos.

See you at the 18th green!

[catrose]

27. I wish I could rec every post here

Where did WE go wrong? Not hardly! Recession, inflation, everything everyone has mentioned. It happened to all of us, not just an unfortunate few.

[ghostsinthemachine]

28. No more unions in the private sector and lost power in public

The only people I know that will "retire" are all in a union or work for some public agency. Or they are owners of companies, most of whom are Govt vendors.

The rest of us (I got out of my union in 1981) are screwed.

[samplegirl]

29. We lost over half of our 401K

During the horrific Bush years! Whoever wrote this forgets that!!!

[spooky3]

37. Yes. The "normal" annual stock market rate of return was 7-8%. While Bush was in office, it averaged

about zero. That means that everyone who WAS lucky enough to able to save during that time failed to get the >50% return over the years that they should have been able to expect. And some lucky enough to have state pensions to which they also contributed found them slashed because the state's pension fund also wasn't able to get the returns they expected, and now legislators refused to increase taxes to pay the promised benefits.

[CountAllVotes]

133. You have that right

They forgot about Reagun and his like. Then they forgot * and his like.
And now they are attempting to forget tRump and his pack of thieves.

All have one thing in common = pukes

We have been warned. If we failed to listen, we find ourselves in a mess which is where we are right now = a giant swamp filled with pukey pukes that needs to be flushed!

[UTUSN]

31. Huh?!1 Us Boomers are *over* & living our lives. What's with this?!1 I'd think the next gens

are the ones who should be crushing on Anxiety. This sounds like the KKKarl ROVE tactic of pitting Dem constituent groups against one another, like GenBoom vs. GenWhatever.

P.S., leave us alone. While we perform *SOLIDARITY* with all our constituent fraternities.

[Initech]

39. We made advertising self aware.

Last edited Thu Jul 6, 2017, 01:19 PM - Edit history (1)

They want us to live crazy luxurious lifestyles and spend every dollar we have on ridiculous bullshit. So people are going broke trying to live up to those standards. Buy a new car for $50,000. Then it breaks down. Buy auto parts that you can't afford. And then buy a new car again. Max out your credit cards and get new ones. Switch your auto insurance every year. Spend more money than you have redecorating your house. Then redecorate it again and again. And again. Then go spend your money on the most expensive medication you can afford. Buy a new computer. Again. And then upgrade it. You're not upgrading fast enough! Upgrade again! But 1p phones on a family plan! These costs add up. It's a huge part of the reason why people don't have any money. Advertisers are running amok and wanting people to blow every dollar we have. One of the biggest mistakes we made as a species was giving a monetary value to advertising.

[HughBeaumont]

99. That and hey, you get to do all of this . . .

. . . while being fired multiple times, possibly having to return to more expensive college, and with a wage that's either flatlined or loses value with each passing work year.

Chez Capitalism's awesome . . . . when you're not on the menu.

[Initech]

108. Yup - rack up the debt and then you're fired!

Not to mention our corporate masters would rather us get sick and die than give us access to any sort of decent health insurance. Maybe that's why they're always advertising pharmaceutical drugs.

[Rollo]

146. Modern advertising uses methods perfected by the Nazis

Listen to radio ads before WWII: they mostly calmly highlight the virtues of this or that product or service. Maybe some catchy jingles.

After WWII, as the Nazi methodology took over Madison Avenue, radio and TV ads became progressively more grating and manipulative. The classic Anacin TV commercials are a good example: a hammer hitting an anvil repeatedly while a strident voice over (could have been Goebbels) intones the horrors of headaches that can only be addressed by one authoritative totalitarian remedy: Anacin.

And there you have the successfull 2016 Trump campaign as well.

[Initech]

152. These are the most annoying advertisements right now:

"What do you know about X Company?"
"Nothing."
"Take a closer look at X Company. Compared to Y Company, X Company is rated to be within a +-1% difference in reliability over Y Company."
"Hmm, I think I'll take a closer look at X Company."

There's tons of companies that are pulling this right now.

[Rollo]

160. Haven't heard that one yet...

Around here the most annoying commercials have been for a certain local casino... playing loud obnoxious repetitive music with a pounding beat while showing people deliriously happy to be throwing their money away. Recently they changed the music but it's still annoying.

[RussBLib]

42. we got lucky

the wife and I were able to retire rather comfortably, and I must confess that we have profited well thus far from the 45 presidency.

I know it has SOMETHING to do with us not having any children. That saved us a shitload of money.

[Bengus81]

71. So has my IRA but that's the problem............

These gains since Jan are built on nothing but BS. There is nothing but hot air pumping this market up right now. Unlike in 2009 when the markets dropped for about the first three months of Obama and then started a slow and steady climb on FACTS and improvements in economic conditions. Bank failures slowed and then stopped,people slowly got back to work.

There has been NONE of that with Trump,just bullshit. I heard yesterday that new car sales are DOWN again for the sixth month in a row.

[ProfessorGAC]

75. I'm Going To Disagree A Bit With That

I think the rise is still an aftereffect of the Obama years. The rise we've seen in the last 6 months has nothing to do with an agenda not yet fomented.

When the analyst types saw that there wasn't going to be a huge rush to change the status quo, the jitters of confidence in the market that usually accompanies a new administration didn't happen. I think the same thing would have happened if HRC had been elected. (Well, she kind of was.)

Obama looked like a major change agent coming in during a bad economic period, so analysts puked on themselves a bit. That caused the temporary down turn.

But, since Trump hasn't been able to do much damage yet, at least macroeconomically, the analysts who crave stability above all else, let things ride and didn't cause any unwarranted bumps in the pavement.

[AJT]

43. The end of guaranteed pensions. Most boomers

have been caught at the tail end of pensions. My husband worked for a company for 40 years. It was sold off 3 times. The first company had a guaranteed pension plan, the next two were 401k. He collects the pension from the first company and was very smart in putting money into the 401k, but if it had all been pension he would have been much better off. His brothers are older and all on full pensions and have very comfortable lifestyles.

[RobinA]

86. Yes, And I Believe

this is an underrated economic force to be reckoned with for the future. What about all the industries that currently serve retirees with disposable income? It's my opinion that today most people pretty much can't "save" enough to fund retirement, there needs to be a source of income like, oh, say, a pension.

[WinkyDink]

89. This is precisely the deal PA Dem. Gov. Wolf has struck, re: Public School pensions. Into 401Ks.

This move will, of course, find severely depleted funds within 20 years, while many of us retired teachers will STILL BE ALIVE.

[MichMan]

173. People don't work for one company for 40 years anymore

Look, the traditional pension was fine when people got a job after HS and stayed there their entire working lives. Unfortunately that also meant that you pretty much had to stay there even if you hated it or found a better paying job somewhere else. Why? Couldn't afford to give up on the pension. Very few people now stay with one company for too many years.

I have had a 401k my entire working life and it has been good for me considering the employer match and the portability. I worked at one job for 18 years until I was downsized in 2009, but also worked a several before and after for 3-4 years each. If there were pensions, I wouldn't have worked at any of those others long enough to get anything. With a 401k I was still able to accumulate money towards retirement and take it with me to the next job.

Sure my balance dropped a lot of value in 2008-2010, but I just left it alone and it all came back and then some.

[AJT]

174. In Australia your pension follows you from job

to job. Both parties contribute, you and the company, but there is a guaranteed distribution amount. It's called the Superannuation Guarantee Fund.

[BeyondGeography]

45. "We recommend saving $1,025,478 at retirement."

Per the retirement calculator at the bottom of the story.

It has been mentioned above, but a lot of people took a big hit in 08-09 and, if they were fortunate enough to keep a job, often had to absorb pay cuts while (of course) seeing no decrease in housing, health care and education costs. They also may have been scared off from the market, which means they missed out on the rebound. So many saved less money and invested less wisely.

But $658k-$1.025 million...these are pretty big numbers. Basically, you have to be making six figures for a good 20 years and investing at least 5-6% and never slipping up on your allocations to get there if you want to save that much for yourself and send your kid(s) to college at the same time. This isn't the typical American in terms of income; the lead sentence should properly read "white-collar college-educated boomers in high-income areas..." because those numbers aren't attainable for most any other group.

[The_jackalope]

47. Everybody has a story.

My father worked as a federal scientist, traveled all over the world and retired very comfortably on a 75% pension.

I've worked in the private sector my whole life. I figured high tech would be the golden ring, even though I was 10 years older than the average software engineer when I got into it. Then the tech wreck happened, stock options evaporated, and layoffs destroyed lives.

Now I'm 66, and my retirement fund is -$75,000 and dropping because my wife has terminal cancer. Luckily my current job is secure for the moment. When I can no longer work, one of my retirement plans involves a belt and the clothing rail in a closet.

But I shouldn't mind, because I got to be an entitled boomer who who had a good selfish life while wrecking other people's worlds.

Fuck this shit.

[SammyWinstonJack]

98. Boomer bashing is fun, isn't it?

[Hekate]

122. Right. And unlike so-called hippie bashing, around here it's occasionally quite real.

Only 1% of us are in the 1%, just like everybody else.

[DBoon]

130. But like hippie bashing, it discredits the accomplishments of boomer

Modern environmentalism and feminism were reinvigorated by boomers yet we are tarred as selfish hedonists.

A generation defined by its opposition to the Vietnam War is now slandered as spendthrifts.

It is no accident we are hearing this. I believe we are seeing right wing revisionist history of the 1960s and 70s in action

[L. Coyote]

48. Republicans.

Electing Republicans, that's where things went wrong (assuming the elections were fair).

[Hekate]

50. Hey, Zorro, did you read Jackalope's post?

Or any of the rest? There's a real reality check in there for you and others who like to play this divisive game.

[Zorro]

90. I posted an article about the unpreparedness of many boomers for retirement

Which from many of the responses is the reality.

I would not recommend you using the OP as an opportunity to insult me, unless you're a masochist.

[Hekate]

121. Insert long and thoughtful reply here, unfortunately eaten by my iPad before I could post...

It's true. Also true that I am out of time to try to recreate it.

Next time, though, it wouldn't hurt you to indicate in your OP that you, personally, have some understanding that Boomers, like every other age cohort in this country, are comprised of the 99%, and that only 1% were like George W. Bush, born on 3rd base and thought he hit a triple. And it couldn't hurt to engage in the contentious discussion before someone explains that his plans for the immediate future include suicide. Because that tore my heart out.

[Zorro]

143. And it wouldn't hurt you to limit your comments to the topic at hand

instead of jumping to conclusions about the motivation of the OP.

The lack of savings for those approaching retirement age is a particularly serious concern for the nation, and the situation will only be exacerbated if current trends continue. The article also points out that a significant percentage of workers aren't participating in available 401(k) plans and thus not taking advantage of company matching contributions, which is very disturbing.

[Skittles]

52. the rules changed, with no real education

it left many unprepared because they saw themselves having the retirement their parents did

add in Reaganomics trickle down garbage and the erosion of the middle class - it's been stacked against the workers for some time now

[AgadorSparticus]

53. Because of a disconcerted effort to get rid of pensions and push 401k.

I remember reading somewhere that you would have to save up something like 3-5 times more for retirement in the 401k than you would for a commensurate pension. 401k is a total scheme.

[radical noodle]

55. Don't lump all baby boomers together

My husband and I are quite prepared for the retirement we are currently enjoying. We were the early crop of baby boomers born right after WWII.

We were also very lucky.

[Hamlette]

126. Agreed. We are in the same boat.

We both worked all of our lives, only had one child, lived below our means and put money away.

We too were lucky. I had parents who supported my education (tuition for law school was lass than $800 per year) we worked past 65 and I worked in government so I have a decent pension and had great health insurance.

I also worked in the unemployment and welfare office so I've seen my share of people's woes. It seems to me there are people in all generations who are not well situated for retirement. Luckily, many will have Social Security which is not much but if you own your home should get you through.

[Music Man]

56. I'm a millennial public school teacher.

Fortunately, I have a teacher's pension, and it is a good feeling to know that I have something steady to look forward to. Pensions have been falling by the wayside since the emergence of 401(K)'s in the '80s, when EVERYTHING was starting to be privatized.

On the other hand, our state's legislature (Kentucky) has not been fully funding the teacher's retirement account for a decade now, and it's become a manufactured crisis. Some states have switched their teacher and public employee accounts to defined contribution systems, often to disastrous results. West Virginia did so in the '90s before ultimately switching back to a defined benefit plan for their teachers.

Just imagine how much worse the pain of 2008 would have been if Bush had had his way in 2005 and privatized Social Security. Politics matters.

[WinkyDink]

92. PA just made that switch. A Democratic Governor has betrayed us.

[stopbush]

57. 50% of Americans have NO retirement savings whatsoever.

69% of Americans have less than $1000 in their savings accounts. 34% of Americans don't even have a savings account.

Who the hell is this article talking about?

[Tactical Peek]

58. They trusted somebody over thirty?

[WinkyDink]

91. I still don't. (I'm 67.)

[Rollo]

59. Less than a year away from full retirement age here...

My mortgage is scheduled to continue for another year and a half, though. But I'm thinking it would be nice to pay it off by age 66, and then count the non-existent mortgage payments as income, added to SS and retirement funds. If I look at it that way, the yearly income is adequate.

I remember in my 20's that retirement was just a far-off concept. I started saving in an IRA but really didn't know the best methods. Now the internet is flooded with retirement planning info... hey folks, that'about 40 years too late to tell us!!!

In any case, there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to retirement savings. Rent or own? House paid off? Planning on a lot of scenic ocean cruises? Or stay at home and tend the vegetable garden? Have an expensive hobby or content just to smell the roses?

It all matters.

[phylny]

137. My husband was always driven to save. We will reap the benefits of his discipline. n/t

[tirebiter]

60. A lot of us saw working off the grid as a good idea.

I did it for over 20 years. Odd jobs, communes, selling things that were not yet legal or still aren't. But then I saw that I was going to end up homeless and alone. Luckily my developed acumen was to figure out things as they came up. So I thought about what skills I had learned and became a stagehand. Joined the union and now I own my house in one of the most expensive places to live. Becoming a skilled tradesman is the best advice I can give. The top 20% doesn't mind paying me well for their symphony, plays, even rock and roll.

[Squinch]

64. I live in an east coast city. Employment is not a problem, though it is difficult for older people

(over 60) to find full employment if they lose their jobs, but that's true everywhere. Many members of what's left of the middle class still live here.

Part of the reason why my comfortable-living neighbors don't have enough: McMansions, and SUV's and conspicuous consumption. Its a scourge around here.

[Sancho]

65. Where did boomers go wrong? Where did all the money go?

The $s went to the ....

Cold War
Korean War
Vietnam War
War(s) in Iraq
War in Afghanistan
War, War, War...glorifying war, military, and weapons.

Just saying.

Since WWII the US has been one big war machine. The MIC took over in the 40s and we've never been able to turn it around.

The retirement "experts" have always given "advice" (much of which is wrong 20 years later), but the wealth of this country is spent on destruction.

[treestar]

66. They didn't. The generation

that came of age in the 50s had jobs with companies that they could work for their entire careers. That went away in the 80s.

[Ilsa]

67. We lost big chunks of retirement in 1987,

(Big percentage, although we didn't have much) and even more in 2008, both in percentage and actual value. The thing is, as we get closer to retirement, we aren't as likely to invest in what has become a volatile stock market. We haven't had 200-300% appreciation like younger investors. Our employers haven't offered pensions since the 1980s, just 401(k) accounts.

[Vinca]

70. Wages have been stagnant for decades and the cost of living has gone up significantly.

[Skidmore]

72. Good grief.

How much more whining need we listen to? Just done with this.

[Bengus81]

73. Gee...Reagan,Union BUSTING,pensions gone POOF for starters....

Trust me where I live you don't need a million $$$ in the bank to retire. You could do it on a fifth of that,have it with a good broker to where it gets a good return,have your home 100% paid for,no car payments and little or no credit card payments. If you have a pension on top of that and you have two SS checks you'll make it.

Many of these financial planners figure you want a new home sometime during retirement plus a beach or lake home,plus a new car every 2-3 years plus this,plus that. Nah...........

[Orrex]

76. I blame the Millennials

Lousy freeloaders with their Pokemons and their Snapchats and their lols.

[Joe941]

87. this.

[kentuck]

78. "Wrong"?

There's probably never been a generation that had it as well as the "Baby Boomers"?

The time in history that "Baby Boomers" have occupied has seen unparalleled advances in equality and economic stability, although we tend to think the exact opposite?

"Baby Boomers" have lived in an exceptional time. They have lived extraordinary lives, thanks in large part to the advancement of the Democratic Party and its policies from FDR forward.

These are the good times, not the bad.

[WinkyDink]

94. There was that liitle thing called "Vietnam," with oh, about 55,000 dead Baby Boomers.

[kentuck]

95. As compared to those little things called WWI and WWII?

A few dead from those generations also.

[WinkyDink]

100. Those generations aren't doing the griping now, though, are they? No; it's the scot-free AFTER-

Boomers. The No-Draft Generations.

(I knew somebody would point to those older wars. I didn't need to mention Korea, either.)

[BeyondGeography]

102. The generational jackpot winners were too young for Korea and too old for Vietnam

Last edited Thu Jul 6, 2017, 10:49 AM - Edit history (3)

They caught the American economy at a historically good and stable time and nobody ever labelled them spoiled brats for it. They bought their houses for a relative pittance at low single-digit fixed rates in the early/mid sixties and were able to sell them for 10X more in the 80s or 90s. Their mortgages were less than what many people pay for their monthly car payments right now. They received defined benefit pensions because when they started working the stock market was a comparative backwater that no one would dream of tethering retirement security to. They were able to work their way up through giant companies and get raises every year. Their kids went to college for under $5k/yr. and much less if it was a state school. Health care was accessible and affordable to them their entire lives, because they turned 65 10 or 15 years ago. And they never had to worry about dying in a war.

These people were born 1935-45, roughly speaking. There are no labels for them and I think they like it that way. Of course, we're talking white guys here and the vast majority of them voted for Trump. If they're anything like my father, and I suspect they are, they're a lot more angry (and have been for a while) than they are grateful.

[cwydro]

82. Well, I'm prepared.

I'm sorry for those who aren't.

[Baitball Blogger]

93. Here's my two cents.

I'm on the very last tail bone of the baby boom run. What I saw was a generation that went through a major change when Generation X reached the work force. Before then, we still had idealists and people who were searching for a better way to live than their parents. Gen X were more work oriented than we were, at the same age. It did have an impact and Baby Boomers let go of the best of the sixties idealism to get back to work.

So, what happened? When Baby Boomers hit their fifties they faced massive lay-offs due to age because of corporate anorexia. Those high paying jobs that we thought would be available to cushion our old age became non-existent. But our responsibilities did increase, especially in the way of paying our kid's college tuition. Today, school tuition is anywhere from $40,000 - $50,000 a year. It's ridiculous because these schools do not have to guarantee a job for these kids. At these prices, they should be forced to provide a solid entry position.

Then, there's Wall Street. The crashes became more common. The old stocks that used to be a guarantee in savings, fell through. Savings and investments has become a Bizarro game of roulette, where you hope you don't have any money on the table when the wheel stops. And it stops often. Almost to the point that I strongly believe that we are seeing an intentional redistribution of funds and the Middle Class is the biggest loser.

Seriously, I can see where the anger and unrest is coming from.

[TexasBushwhacker]

96. The disappearance of pensions is a big reason

and the underfunding of the ones that still exist. Add to that years of wage stagnation. Having to take time away from careers to care for elderly parents. Stock market crashes. The cost of higher education has hit parents bank accounts as well as their kids. Most people's major asset is their home, and the value of that took a beating.

[leftyladyfrommo]

151. And those poor people who bought when the market

Was high and then the market dropped out.

I had a customer who has a 90 000 mtg and after the crash her house appraised at 40,000.

That happened to thousands.

[TexasBushwhacker]

158. And with interest rates going up, it will heat up again

People will start buying more than they can afford because it's "now or never". I'd like to think that we won't have the sub-prime mess that led to the last crash, but I think the banks would be happy to do it all over again. We bailed them out last time and the remaining banks are bigger than ever.

[killbotfactory]

97. Why do these economist asshole insist on blaming individuals for systemic market failures?

And bad government policies?

The "free-market" solutions, union busting, pension destroying policies of Reaganomics and neoliberalism destroyed people's retirements. And they're still gunning for social security.

Wages have been stagnant for three fucking decades. Half the country makes less than 30,000 a year, and housing costs have exploded. What do they expect people to do?

[WinkyDink]

101. Because that's the Big Lie promulgated by well-off and smug Republicans.

[Canoe52]

109. The ole blame the victim. Solves all the problems.

[raccoon]

123. Thank you. nt

[ehrnst]

105. Loss of pensions, benefits, job security, steep increase in the cost of living, medical care... (nt)

[samnsara]

106. we were lucky enough to start saving early so we are very well set...

.....and will have to support my 90 yr old parents and probably my child since they didn't do so well.....

[Johnny2X2X]

112. Lack of education about money

Financial Planning needs to be taught in grade school, in middle school, in high school, and in college.

Every person should have a basic understanding of the "Miracle of Compound Interest" before they reach adulthood. Every person should understand the concept of the Time Value of Money and what that means to them.

The most insane part of that whole article was this, "Only a third of Americans who have access to a 401(k) plan contribute to it" WOW!!!! 2/3s of Americans who have access to grow their money tax free, often times with a matching contribution from their employer(Free Money) say no. I firmly believe this is due to a lack of basic understanding of what saving as little as $3 a day at 20 years old means to them in 45+ years when they retire. People have no idea that $5 a day every day means maybe $1 Million to them when they retire, if they did they would find $5 a day.

Now before I get scolded, I understand that not everyone can find $5 a day to save, I have been that poor in my life too. But those cases are rare IMO. I think Social Security needs to be strengthened so pay outs can increase to the level of maintaining a dignified life for everyone. But there are way too many people capable of saving plenty that do not simply because they don't understand what it really means to them.

[RobinA]

116. I First Ran Into

a 401K when they were first getting started big time in the '80's. I have had four 401ks since but never, that's NEVER, had a match. Oh wait, yes I did. In one of my 401ks I vested and received a match one month before they stopped their match. So I did get a match for one month. Company stock.

[nini]

117. I saved

and it was a good thing because I had to live off that when I was injured in a car accident and didn't work for 5 years, then when I was laid off in 2009 and had to rebuild again.

I wish it was as easy as 'saving'.

[Johnny2X2X]

119. Life happens, we need more support

Sorry for your situation. I firmly believe the social safety net needs to be made stronger so people in your situation don't have to blow their life savings because they got hurt. And I think that a lot of people don't understand how close they are to being in your situation they could be.

You are a corner case. For the vast majority of people, they do not save and invest because of a lack of knowledge, not a lack of ability. When 2 out of every 3 people who can opt into their company's 401k choose not to do so it's a failure of education, it's not a failure of character, ability, or discipline.

[nini]

149. I agree that people should plan for that rainy day more than do

Maybe they think there's always tomorrow... yea.. there is but who knows what that will bring.

If it wasn't for my mom I would have been homeless in a wheelchair with a kid as a single mom. I was lucky compared to many others who don't have that support system.

[CountAllVotes]

138. It is kind of difficult to save

You have no income. do these idiots expect?

People don't expect shit to happen but oh yes, it does!

I hope you get well soon and don't beat yourself for something that happened to you that you have NO CONTROL over!

You cannot plan or prepare for the unexpected tragedy that can wipe you out completely!

Shame on those that think otherwise!

[Honeycombe8]

142. I keep saying this! Financial planning is KEY to a secure life.

But people aren't taught anything about that at all. If your parents don't know about it so can teach you, you are greatly disadvantaged.

I didn't learn what a security was until I was over 40. I then read some investment & financial planning books and started being more proactive (I had a 401k).

The little things add up.

Example: I mention to my father (I'm 63) that extra insurance is $500. He says, "That's nothin'!" I tell him, well, that's $10,000 in 20 years, not counting the insurance cost increases during that time. That would pay for a new roof or a new a/c system or another emergency.

If you can save $200 a year by clipping coupons, that's $1,000 in five years, plus change if you invested it conservatively (online banking pays the best savings acct rates). Nice little emergency fund, all from clipping coupons.

I think we live in a must-have society. Few people forego getting a smartphone, even when they don't NEED one. They don't distinguish between need and want. Things like this add up, and take away money from the future. It never ends, either. There's always the next newer Smartphone, the bigger tv, the newer car, etc.

I wouldn't say the prior generation was much better, though. It just cost less to live then. Wives didn't have to work to make ends meet. There were more pensions, pay was higher. THE MIDDLE CLASS WAGE HAS NOT INCREASED, as adjusted for inflation, in years, I've read.

[inanna]

168. Sorry but it's not rare.

>> Now before I get scolded, I understand that not everyone can find $5 a day to save, I have been that poor in my life too. But those cases are rare IMO. <<

It's not rare when most of the jobs being created tend to fall under the ever expanding minimum wage umbrella.

[Johnny2X2X]

169. Simply not true anymore

For the last 3 years or so wages have been rising faster than inflation. Obama'a economy has been producing good paying jobs for years. The standard of for workers gets better when wage growth outpaces inflation.

Of course there was a ton of ground to make up after the Bush Great Depression.

Raising the minimum wage to a living wage is one of the first things that needs to be done. If $15 is the new floor, most will be making well over that.

[loyalsister]

115. Deadhead stickers on cadillacs

'"Greed is good" wealth worship, and 80s glamour all reflect cultural trends that shifted priorities away from practical planning to the pusuit of massive stockpiles of money. Dallas, Dynasty, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, and that guy who published "Art of the Deal" reflect the mentality that grew out of the Reagan revolution.
It backfired.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

129. Don't forget "Beverly Hillbillies" and "Gilligan's Island"

for more views on how the "other one percent" lives. Or Major Charles Emerson Winchester III on MASH.

I think I can afford the sticker.

[CountAllVotes]

135. Two Deadheads that have or had Cadillacs

One was Jerry Garcia, the man himself (he deserved it).

The other is the billionaire that bought his Wolf guitar for $1.8 million. Not to worry! This CEO will "allow" members of the Garcia family to *touch* it if they beg.

[bhcodem]

131. Lack of pension

I agree this is the main cause...lack of pensions. It is hard enough living pay check to pay check without trying to put aside something for retirement. My late husband and I managed to put our two children through college without much loans due to scholarships and my husband's side job to supplement his teaching income and my job's contribution. I wouldn't have much to fall back on if he hadn't had the foresight to get a little extra life insurance!

[CountAllVotes]

132. The IRA

It came into being when I was in my early 20's earning a whopping $6/hr. I paid $300 for rent and the rest of my hard earned pittance went to pay for things like food,clothing and a laundry mat (had to to haul it on a bus to a laundromat as the apt. building had no such things as a washer/dryer and I had no money for something called a car), food, medical care, etc. etc. etc.

Nothing left at the end of the month and certainly no 2K a year to save.

It might have improved had I not gotten sick. Might have.

Stupid article pointing the finger at a specific age group, some are have's and others are have nots and always will be because they never HAD. Men beat me in wages no matter how many degrees I nailed I was never a glowing "Executive Assistant", some guy got that job and gee, I can't remember how fast he could type.

Stay well & don't be a man and you might have a shot. Maybe.

Subject is dead and gone a long time ago. again ...

The "Greatest Generation" fared much better with things called Unions and pension plans that paid. I know a few still living. They tend to be either flat ass broke living with their kids or they are millionaires I've noticed. Some are widows/widowers and they collect their spouses pensions, SS, and a few other things that no one gets in this day in time. The past it was oh yes, and it was swallowed up by GREED.

[Honeycombe8]

144. You're so young, though. Your income will grow with the years...

if you keep working.

I remember being where you were...I didn't have $5 extra at Christmas time even for a splurge of some sort. It took every penny I earned to pay my bills. I changed jobs, got paid more. Changed again, got paid more. Ultimately I decided what to do for a living (after a lot of research), & pursued that (required a $2k loan from my mother). That worked out eventually. I got paid a little more each year...and it ended up growing quite a bit over the years, as I got more experienced and better and had expertise in my field.

If you start putting just $100 in the bank a year, when you can, and then increase that as you can...you'd be surprised how that will grow.

You are lucky. You have TIME that older people don't have.

Check out some investment & financial planning books from the library. Read them even if you don't understand them. Some of it will get through, and it will start you thinking about money differently and thinking about your future.

Don't forget: You are young and able to work. There will come a day when that is not possible, whether you're too sick, too old, or no one wants you. THAT is what you need to save for. You won't have the ability at that time to do much about it. You can do it. Baby steps.

[CountAllVotes]

154. It is too late already

Too late. Getting DX'd with with a serious illness will do that to a person and I am not so damn young anymore. I was in my early 20's in 1980.

[Honeycombe8]

156. Oh. I'm sorry to hear that. There is always Social Security as a safety net, & Medicare.

Disability, if you will qualify for that. Hopefully you are still able to work, though.

I feel for you. Could have happened to anyone.

[CountAllVotes]

157. I am on SSDI

and have been since I got this horrific DX fresh out of grad school. My future was bright I thought until one day I woke up seeing things out of different colors in each eye which led to blindness not long after that, hence my "retirement". I do have health benefits however thanks to the UNION job I had. Had it not been a Union job, I'd would have been kicked to the curb and simply dumped. Memorize that word: UNION. They have already negotiated my health benefits for 2018 and they are realizing a small increase in cost of 2.3% which they will cover.

Anything can happen to anyone at anytime no matter how much you plan is my point. You may have to dump that IRA to get on SSI if you have not worked for 10 years. Luckily, I paid my dues.

I was "retired" so to speak. I get a measly pension of >$100 mo. + SSDI which is not much as I worked for the Federal government for 10 years and was paying into THEIR pension system. I got screwed, that is what happened and it did not feel good!

Thanks for the well wishes however!

[Honeycombe8]

170. +1. I see.

Yes, things can happen to anyone, at any time.

However, yours is a not so common occurrence. Lucky you, right? For most, they can do all right, if they plan well ahead and start tucking a little away, to the extent they can. But young people have to be educated about finances, how to live as a senior, how to save money, etc. I didn't know a thing, and it cost me. I didn't have anyone to even tell me I should file an income tax return and get a refund.

Good luck. I hope you can scrape by, given your situation. I am on my own, but healthy so far. No one is healthy forever, though.

Since I live alone, I have been considering different options for what to do when the time comes that I am having trouble living alone.

[thucythucy]

134. The boomers I know are caught between

helping their kids and grandkids, and helping to care for their parents.

Stupid article. If "across the country, and all age groups" are "drastically under-saved for retirement" maybe it has more to do with structural problems with how our economy is managed (for the benefit of the super rich) rather than any particular generation's foibles.

[CountAllVotes]

136. +1,000 !!

n/t

[Honeycombe8]

145. "Here's how a janitor amassed an $8M fortune"

If you are young, take note! (Too late for me and many others.)

"Ronald Read, a Vermont gas station attendant and janitor, invested in recognizable names when he amassed an $8 million fortune, according to his attorney. A large part of that fortune was later bequeathed to an area library and hospital after his death, stunning a community that had no idea about his wealth.

***

"He only invested in what he knew and what paid dividends."

Read, who died at 92, has been described as quiet and frugal. No one appeared to have any idea that he was so wealthy, including his stepchildren, Rowell said."

http://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/09/heres-how-a-janitor-amassed-an-8m-fortune.html

Also: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/get-there/the-remarkable-life-and-lessons-of-ronald-read/2015/04/24/7c12a26a-e944-11e4-9a6a-c1ab95a0600b_story.html?utm_term=.97d6927acb5f

[Rollo]

147. The key to a happy retirement...

Is to lower expectations.

I view retirement as a chance to get off the hamster wheel and out of the rat race.

Who cares if I don't have the latest and greatest car/gadget/clothing?

What I'll have instead is priceless: time to stop, smell the roses, not really have to be anywhere at any time or to answer to little Martinettes throwing mantrums on a regular basis.

I plan on taking full advantages of what is free or at least very low cost: walks in parks, gardening, museums, and just observing the world go by and commenting on it from time to time.

[janx]

150. Now why, do you suppose, would Marketwatch publish such an article?

Hmmm?

Information literacy, people! It's important.

[walkingman]

153. 5 words - Ronald Reagan, Trickle Down Economics

[Rollo]

161. Plan D: Reverse mortgage

Although they have a bad rep, because of abuse by lenders, it's still a last ditch option to help one stay in one's home. More attractive if one doesn't have kids or others expecting to inherit the estate. And read the fine print very carefully. Better yet, have a lawyer go over it before signing.

[alarimer]

171. Unfettered capitalism betrayed them, and all of us.

A person should be able to have decent job at decent wages that provides for a comfortable retirement, including health care. THe cost of health care should not be a burden for an ordinary person, no matter what happens to them.

A serious social safety net is what we desperately need.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

172. I wonder what the average income would have to be to achieve those results?

SThose projections wouldn't work for someone making 40k a year.......... I don't think.

[Wolf Frankula]

175. Here are some possibilities why

taken from my experience,

1: the oil shock of the early 70's

2: the oil shock of the late 70's

3: stagflation.

4: the Reagan Depression of the early 80's

5: corporate raiding

6: outsourcing, offshoring, downsizing, 'rightsizing'.

7: The Bush recession of the early 90's

8: the Bush recession of the early 00's

9: the bank panic and recession of '07-'08.

10: the gutting of unions.

Wolf

[catrose]

178. Stagflation...I'm swooning

That was the name of my Econ 201 textbook...many long years ago. I don't think I've heard the word since then.

[pirateshipdude]

176. The rules changed on us. Eom

[no_hypocrisy]

177. Not our fault.

Blame it on Reagan and his successors who redistributed the wealth, changed the rules of employment, and let inflation reduce (if not eliminate) our prospects of retirement.

[MichMan]

179. Reagan left office nearly 30 years ago

Plenty of opportunities to undo anything that was passed during his term

[no_hypocrisy]

180. I respectfully disagree.

Reagan's principles were deeply embedded in the republican party platform, adopted by federal and state officeholders who then made legislation, influenced business leaders, and neutered the unions.

[MichMan]

181. How was Reagan able to pass everything?

Blaming someone who left office 28 years ago is simplistic. There were plenty of opportunities to undo any of Reagan's policies since then if it was a priority. Apparently it was not considered important

Democrats controlled the house the entirety of Reagan's two terms and also for the single term of Bush 1.

So what I am hearing is that Reagan in eight years was able to pass terrible legislation with the approval of a Democratic majority in the House while Clinton & Obama in their first terms (also in 8 years) with majorities in both the House & Senate couldn't repeal what Reagan had done?

Why?

[no_hypocrisy]

182. Even though the House and Senate were democratic,

it was during one of the last eras of bipartisanship. And I believe the dems of the day believed the tax cuts would be temporary and would give a boost to business. Nobody anticipated tax cuts and redistribution of wealth and the incremental death of the New Deal and the Great Society to be a permanent war.

[NobodyHere]

184. That's what you get with incompetent leadership