Yet another survey of American retirement savers has revealed that a significant chunk of people don’t feel comfortable with the amount of money they’ve already stockpiled — with about half feeling as though they’re chasing a retirement dream that may have already left them behind.
In a recent poll of adults aged 45 to 65 conducted by the Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, 49% of respondents were identified as “chasers” — people who felt as though they’d fallen behind on their retirement savings plans, or worried that it was nearly too late for them to achieve a comfortable post-working life without soon increasing their retirement savings.
That’s the despite the fact that the mean “chaser,” as identified by Allianz, had $400,000 in retirement savings. In addition, about half of that group had an IRA, with 35% reporting mutual funds and 37% with a traditional pension. By contrast, 70% of “confident savers” reported having an IRA, while about half had mutual funds or a pension plan.
In addition, more than 60% of the “chasers” said they worried about running out of money in retirement, or believed they’d have to work longer than preferred.
“Among those Americans actively saving for retirement, our study finds a dramatic difference between those who feel on track and those who feel behind, with this subset wishing for ways to catch up but without taking on too much risk,” Allianz Life vice president of consumer insights, said in a statement about the results. “While it’s a positive that they are actively saving for retirement, the level of anxiety is concerning and many are simply not aware of potential solutions to help them catch up.”
Among the less-confident group of “chasers,” 71% said they’d be willing to sacrifice the potential for growth in exchange for stability when looking into potential retirement products.
The Minneapolis-based Allianz’s survey joins a host of consumer probes showing general retirement uneasiness. Earlier this year, for instance, fellow life insurance provider Northwestern Mutual found that a third of Americans have less than $5,000 saved for retirement, while a Federal Reserve survey revealed that less 40% of adults felt comfortable with their retirement outlooks.
Written by Alex Spanko
