Will retirement go extinct? Surely not, but younger people are looking for new ways to finance their survival later in life. Millennials represent a shift in attitude that shows many of them have very unretirement-like life plans. Young Americans today are misinformed about just how much it takes to survive in retirement, which leaves them behind in trying to figure out how to fund this late life stage. Additionally, 56% of Americans think they can get by in retirement on a million dollars or less—unrealistic goals, to say the least, with high costs looming, such as health care. Even more misinformed, 17% are counting on winning the lottery to fund their retirement goals. Furthermore, currently, 83% of retirees are not working, but 83% of millennials plan to work in retirement, mainly due to the gig economy, where employee benefits are less certain. However, most millennials are taking the DIY approach to saving for retirement, which is nerving considering the lack of sufficient understanding. Ultimately, we do not need to prepare for retirement extinction just yet, but we will need to look into ways of coping with evolving society.
See Marlene Y. Satter, 9 Reasons Retirement May Go Extinct, LifeHealthPro, December 27, 2016.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.
