David Bowie’s classic song “Golden Years” tells us to “look at that sky, life’s begun.” But retirement’s “golden years” are looking less golden for Americans. Forrester data indicates that many Americans are willing to work past the age of retirement or even work a part-time job in retirement to supplement their income.
Preparation for retirement is also greatly lacking. Many Americans don’t own retirement accounts and aren’t seeking retirement planning advice. Instead, they focus on more immediate financial concerns, impacting their ability to save and prepare for life after working.
Our data also shows that only half of Americans believe that they know how to save for retirement. Even worse, the majority of those with retirement accounts say that they are not getting the advice they need. All of this highlights an unmet need for retirement education that wealth management firms can address by driving more awareness among consumers and by training advisors to highlight planning’s importance with their clients.
Bowie closes his song on an optimistic note: “Nothing’s gonna touch you in these golden years.”
Financially savvy consumers and their advisors know the power of compound returns. They also know that an early start will help retirement savers build a financial buffer that will ease their anxieties about the future. Better to educate and prepare when people are young than to force them into a retirement that is inevitably insecure or, worse yet, isn’t really a retirement at all. Preparation will leave those golden years untouched.
Forrester clients interested in discussing our latest retirement report or this interesting data can connect with me via inquiry or guidance session.
