Ten Retirement Stats

USA Today shares ten retirement stats. Some of the notable findings:

• Over 40% of single seniors 65 and over get at least 90% of their income from Social Security
• Only 51% of Americans are confident they're saving enough
• More than one-third of Americans expect to work in retirement
• Almost 60% of retirees don't budget for leisure activities when planning for retirement
• Close to 50% of retired households spend more money, not less, in retirement

Some thoughts on these:

• That's way too much to count on Social Security to cover. It's supposed to be a safety net, not a full retirement account. I did not count on it at all in saving for my retirement but I do hope I see a return of at least some of my money.
• Of the 51% who are "confident" they are saving enough, 25% are probably wrong.
• I know many people would like to work in retirement (or need to in order to retire), but that's not a sound strategy IMO. So many people are not able to work in retirement that you just can't count on being able to.
• No budgeting for leisure activities? Isn't that what retirement is for? It's one of our largest expenses these days.
• We are spending way less than we did while working. In fact, other than travel, I can't name one category where we are spending more.

How about you? Any thoughts on the numbers above?

Comments

[Nina Sayers]

The other stats in that USA Today article are mind-blowing!

[Apex]

The only category I have found reduced is food spent while at work. Still need to eat but can do it slightly cheaper, although not probably much cheaper.

I don't save much on gas, still need to get around while at home. I don't save much on clothes as I didn't need that expensive of clothes for work and I have not moved to a nudist colony so still need clothes.

But now I have my own medical insurance costs, which is way more expensive. That alone makes retirement spending cost more.

Still have middle aged kids so haven't changed life much in those areas but eventually travel will probably increase costs too. Once the kids are gone I expect those expenses to go way down but that would happen with or without retirement. That is the only category of expenses I see really going down for us but it is unrelated to retirement.

I don't consider money saved on taxes from lower income to be spending because I am looking at disposal money and how much is spent to live.

So it would be instructive to see where you are saving money by actually spending less on things you used to need to spend on when working.

[FMF]

Apex --

1. Congrats on retirement!

2. If you follow my other blog, I'll be posting the retirement savings piece there, though it may be a few months before I get to it. (perhaps as part of my annual budget review)

[Myfinancekits]

It is better to work longer before retirement than to plan to work in retirement. There is no guarantee that you will be able to work then. Also, it is a myth to think that expenses will be less when retired. Initially, it can be less but as one is growing older, he may need to spend more on healthcare

[Melon]

I agree with each an every point.Also I feel people start retirement planning very late in their career.However I advice my children to save at least 5% from their salary each month to enjoy a successful retirement.