Even More Retirees Coming After Baby Boomers

May 31, 2013 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – The number of Americans reaching 65 years old each year will continue to grow beyond the Baby Boomers, according to a trend analysis from LIMRA.

For years, said LIMRA, researchers have suggested that as Baby Boomers begin to retire, they will create a large statistical bump, which will subside as members of the generation pass. However, this theory is not proving to be true.

LIMRA pointed to figures from U.S. Census Bureau, which show the number of Americans reaching 65 years old each year will continue to grow beyond the Baby Boomer generation. “In fact, even when the last baby boomer reaches 65, there is no noticeable decline in the numbers,” said LIMRA in the analysis.

Specifically, 3.4 million individuals are projected to reach age 65 in 2013. By 2023, 4.1 million Americans will reach 65 and then 4.2 million by 2050.

Immediately following the Boomers are 78.4 million members of Generation X and Generation Y (age 30 to 48). After them, those ages 11 to 29 represent another 82 million individuals who will be heading toward retirement in the next 35 to 55 years.

“This means that financial services firms should be looking at the retirement market not just for the immediate opportunity offered by Boomers but preparing for the possibility of long-term, sustained growth as Gen X and Y consumers prepare for retirement,” said LIMRA in the analysis.

LIMRA estimates there will be nearly $22 trillion in investable assets from Americans ages 55 and older available for retirement income solutions by 2020. Younger generations, who probably will not have a pension and will likely be solely responsible for their retirement savings, will have more investable assets by the time they reach age 55, according to the analysis.

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