One of the survey’s biggest findings is that 61% of those 50 and up are worried they won’t have enough money for retirement.

Among AARP survey findings: 61% of Americans 50 and up are worried they won’t have enough money for retirement. And only 21 percent of people have a retirement plan.

An increasing number of people are worried that they won’t have enough money to live comfortably in retirement, and men aren’t as financially secure as they once were, according to an annual survey from AARP.

The AARP Financial Security Trends Survey, conducted in January and released in April, included interviews with more than 8,300 Americans over 30 across every state in the country. Conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago, the survey aims to analyze the financial experiences and attitudes among Americans.

One of the survey’s biggest findings is that 61% of those 50 and up are worried they won’t have enough money for retirement, Indira Venkat, senior vice president of research at AARP, told USA TODAY on Wednesday.

And if you break those numbers down even more, one in five of people who have not retired have no savings at all, Venkat said.

  • Boozilla@lemmy.worldEnglish
    543·
    6 months ago

    If you are still young and working try to remember this: time is on your side. Any small amounts you can put away now for later really helps. I know so many people who say they cannot afford to save and invest for retirement. I totally get it. If you are living paycheck to paycheck, trying to save any money sounds laughable / impossible.

    However, if your employer has a 401k plan and they do any matching: do whatever you have to in order to meet that matching. It’s a vital part of your compensation. If you are not investing up to that matching level, you are throwing part of your paycheck away. It’s not just white collar office jobs that have 401k plans. Even some fast food places offer these, as do many blue collar jobs.

    These are all short-term / individual things to consider. Long term we need more unions, more worker cooperatives, and more corporations paying their fucking taxes.

    • anon_8675309@lemmy.world
      10·
      6 months ago

      Yes. Because compound interest is exponential. At 10, 20, 30 years you have 2X, 4X, and 8X your money. Assuming about 7 pct interest.

      If you start now, you can get away with putting a few hundred a month away. If you wait until you’re 40 or 50 you have to be putting thousands away per month.

      • QuarterSwede@lemmy.world
        8·
        6 months ago

        Something that is vs something that might be. The economy doesn’t work on what ifs and neither does saving money.

          • businessfish@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
            1·
            6 months ago

            you aren’t the only one, shit is scary lately. but i’ve personally taken that as initiative to go do/buy the things i want (that i can afford) now instead of later in my life when i have more money/time, because realistically i don’t know that i will have more money/time when i’m older if things keep up as they are right now.

            it hurts to think about.