Benefits October 17, 2000

Retirees "Avoiding" Risk, Advice

October 17, 2000 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Although the average American will live 20 to 30 years in retirement, nearly a quarter (22%) of those currently in retirement are worried they won't be able to sustain their current standard of living for even a decade.
Reported by

In fact, though nearly half (44%) of those retirees don’t believe their income will hold up for 20 years,

  • 52% don’t look for help from others
  • 59% haven’t changed their financial plan since retiring and
  • 46% haven’t met with a financial professional since they got that gold watch.

Maybe They Should

The survey found that nearly a third (31%) of those already in retirement aren’t taking inflation, fluctuating interest rates or rising medical costs into consideration when planning retirement finances.

The U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray survey found that 82% of retirees were comfortable with the risk in their investment portfolios, and only 3% would like more risk – if it offered the chance for greater rewards. 

Not surprisingly, the vast majority (80%) characterize their current level of investment risk as conservative, while more than half (54%) claim to spend only the income from their assets, while saving the principal.

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