by Shelley Seagler
Earlier this month, the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) released their 22nd annual Retirement Confidence Survey. However, the findings of the past several years indicate the report might be more aptly named the lack of confidence survey. Sadly, only 14% of Americans are very confident they will have enough money to live comfortably in retirement.
As I read through the report, several key findings popped out to me:
– Worker confidence about having enough money to pay for medical expenses and long-term care expenses in retirement remains well below their confidence levels for paying basic expenses.
– Regardless of retirement age expectations, half of current retirees surveyed say they left the work force unexpectedly due to health problems, disability, or changes at their employer, such as downsizing or closure.
– Retirees report they are significantly more reliant on Social Security as a major source of their retirement income than current workers expect to be.
– More than half of workers (56 percent) report they and/or their spouse have not tried to calculate how much money they will need to have saved by the time they retire so that they can live comfortably in retirement.
Although I found the entire survey quite interesting, the findings above resonated with me because I kept thinking, “Snider Advisors can help with that!” Let’s look at the specific things you can do to raise your confidence about retirement and how we can help:
– Maximize your investments. The number one job of your retirement portfolio is to generate enough cash flow to allow you to maintain your desired standard of living for the rest of your life. Our proven system, the Snider Investment Method is strategically engineered to help you pay your bills, pay your taxes, and keep up with inflation.
– Look into long-term care insurance. Long-term care insurance can help you pay for health care services that are typically not covered by health insurance or Medicare. It’s estimated that 2/3rds of Americans over the age of 65 will need long-term care health care services in their lifetime. And the cost for those services can be staggering. According to Genworth’s most recent Cost of Care Survey, the national average for a one year stay in a nursing home is $77,745 – and that price is increasing at a rate of 4.35% each year.
A few years ago, I wrote an article about the Cost of Waiting to Buy Long-Term Care Insurance. While the specific numbers have certainly changed, the message has not. Now is the best time to buy long-term care insurance. No matter how you look at it, you will never pay less for long-term care insurance than you will today. If looking into long-term care insurance is on your list, contact me today.
– Protect your biggest asset. While you are still working, your most valuable asset is what economists call your human capital. This is the sum total of the skills, knowledge, and wisdom you can trade with your employer or your customers for a paycheck. If you are not sure how you would continue to pay your bills if you became seriously sick or hurt, you need disability insurance.
Disability insurance protects your paycheck if you lose earned income due to a major accident or illness. You may be tempted to think you would never be affected by a disability, but the statistics say otherwise. For example, the chance of a 35-year-old suffering a disability that lasts three months or longer before age 65 is 50 percent. Snider Advisors can look at your entire financial picture and design a policy to fit your specific situation. Contact us today to learn more.
– Calculate how much you will need for retirement. Knowing how much you should save and invest today to reach your retirement goals is the first step in creating a retirement plan. Our My Financial Plan web application is designed to help you answer your most pressing questions about retirement. In addition to helping you determine how much you will need to save to fund your desired lifestyle, it can help you to create a realistic plan to meet your retirement goals.
– Make a wise decision about when to take Social Security. When it comes to Social Security, the most important decision you’ll make is the first one – when should you start taking Social Security? Whatever you decide will affect you for the rest of your life. Our Special Report, It’s All in the Timing: Evaluating the Best Time for You to Begin Taking Social Security, offers a detailed and comprehensive analysis to help you make the best decision possible.
In the world we live in, planning for retirement will probably be one of the most challenging and certainly one of the most important things you must do. But seeking out good partners, like the team at Snider Advisors, and relying on the appropriate resources and tools can add a significant boost to your level of retirement confidence.
