Focusing On Retirement

Published on September 12, 2013

, it was reported that a MassMutual survey, conducted by Brightwork Partners, found that “saving enough for retirement” is on the top of people’s financial worries.  The percentage of people who listed this as their biggest financial worry increased from 18% in 2011 to 24% in 2013. 

This has led to many people saving more for their retirement and seeking professional advice from a personal financial advisor. Though only 28% of respondents cited that they are now using a financial advisor, or have in the last five years, this number is up from previous years. 

The survey also found that the percentage of men compared to women who use a financial planner is up from previous years (with the percentage of women using financial advisors down).  In 2011, of those who responded, 30% of men had advisors compared to 27% of women; but in 2013 31% of men had advisors compared to 24% of women.

Overall, men’s confidence when it comes to retirement planning, is much higher than women’s.   This gender gap could be because of how closely they pay attention to their retirement accounts

• 30% of men v. 22% of women pay attention to fund performance
• 26% v. 18% pay attention to income in retirement and
•  25% v. 15% pay attention to asset allocation

In addition to the disparate retirement preparedness between genders, there is a difference among age groups.  For those people under age 50, the number who expect that they will delay retirement has gone up, while for people 50 and older the amount has gone down.

Retirement is something that should be thought about early, often and seriously.  At Next Generation Trust, we are here to answer any questions you may have about self-directed IRAs and what type of investments and transactions are allowed with these retirement plans, so that you can plan for more fruitful retirement years.