Retirement savings ....Yikes !

[brin]

I just heard a panel discussion on the news about retirement savings and a survey was done that showed 57% of the people at or near retirement age of 65 yrs. old had less than $25,000.00 in the bank...and 28% said they had a bad view of the future and economy...Now this is not good.... Imagine , what are these seniors going to do ? No interest is being paid on savings, pensions for many are non existent, retirement accounts were raided by many to survive this depression...at least that is what the panel said..

 

[murphy1244]

going to be a very interesting next ten years

 

[J F]

Going to be a lot of retirees living in poverty. It will be interesting to see if FICA/SS taxes need to go up (I know, we're running out of that $ already, for it's intended purpose).

We are having/going to have huge waves of boomers retiring, with many of them without adequate savings...the piper needs to be paid at some point (and by someone).

In our current tax situation, I can only see raising FICA/SS on working people to "rob Peter", as way too many people take out of the fund more than they put in...not to mention all the other crud that has gone on with the fund over the years.

I hope it won't get as ugly as I'm thinking.

 

[creekbend]

I saw the report on Fox News after My wife and I came back from our Doctor;s appointment. Thanks for posting.

 

[TripleR]

Yeah, I just saw that, I worked past my eligible retirement date by several years to insure a decent amount in savings and not to have to rely on Social Security; course I have to stop buying tractors...

 

[murphy1244]

Yeah, I just saw that, I worked past my eligible retirement date by several years to insure a decent amount in savings and not to have to rely on Social Security; course I have to stop buying tractors...

Stop buying tractors???

 

[J F]

There are too many people who don't realize that SS was never meant to be "your retirement", but only a supplement to it, and you have to save towards your retirement yourself (or win the lotto/find a rich aunt/uncle )

 

[rekees4300]

Imagine , what are these seniors going to do ?

They are going to join the 47 million living on food stamps. Life without money is harsh.

 

[jerrybob]

Lack of savings is a lack of discipline for most people. You can always put something away and do without a new toy or item. This is a habit lots of people drawing a paycheck seem to have forgotten or were never taught. That's too bad......$25K is nothing in today's world! My brother never had any savings.......but he always drove a new car, had a great set of golf clubs, new clothes.......at the end....he was always trying to borrow money from someone.....very sad.:2cents:

 

[mjarrels]

Worst case... wife and I can move back to the Philippines and live like king and queen on Navy retirement and other investment income. Clark Howard was talking about the same thing, too many baby boomers have nothing, nada. If I knew I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself.

 

[brin]

They are going to join the 47 million living on food stamps. Life without money is harsh.

I can't help feeling really sorry for them all...I feel sorry for the ones that could not see tomorrow and save, I feel sorry for the ones who just partied all the time because now they are old, ( I remember Mickey Mantel being interviewed in his later years...he was probably 60 or so...and he said if he knew he would live that long he would have taken better care of himself ) so there are those that spent their money never thinking they would live as long as they have....I feel sorry for them and I feel especially sorry for those who did everything right...they were frugal, saved , planned but were hit with medical or family problems that siphoned off their savings...etc...there are so many different cases out there....

Like the panel pointed out...this has been known for decades...I realized it 30 yrs. ago... I remember thinking one day all these baby boomers are going to pull all their money out of the stock market and then what happens to the economy....People just were not ready for this bubble bursting situation....and 57% or more were really not ready...they thought it would never end....real sad.

 

[J F]

They are going to join the 47 million living on food stamps. Life without money is harsh.

Yes. And the merry-go-round keeps spinning. Higher taxes on the working people to support poor decisions by others (for the most part...please, I realize there are many people who truly deserve help do to circumstances beyond their control...but the %'s point to the opposite for the most part).

 

[TripleR]

Since I retired I have met several elderly, as in older than I, who had gone back to work after losing all of their savings and 401K due to the poor economy. They are poor not due to lack of saving or lack of hard work, but because of the greed or criminal activities of those they trusted with their money.

 

[jerrybob]

I feel sorry for those folks who truly have drained their accounts due to family emergencies and such......but.....the old saying....."Bad planning on your part...does not make for an emergency on mine" really applies to so many people when it come to financial matter. Sad but true!

 

[brin]

I feel sorry for those folks who truly have drained their accounts due to family emergencies and such......but.....the old saying....."Bad planning on your part...does not make for an emergency on mine" really applies to so many people when it come to financial matter. Sad but true!

Of course you are right and I agree, but I sure hate the thought of seeing people hurt like I think is going to happen unless something changes...and of course all we need to do is look at Cyprus...our savings and investments can be confiscated...think of that ...or better yet don't...LOL

 

[J F]

Since I retired I have met several elderly, as in older than I, who had gone back to work after losing all of their savings and 401K due to the poor economy. They are poor not due to lack of saving or lack of hard work, but because of the greed or criminal activities of those they trusted with their money.

I feel for those people too Bob. For anyone getting close to your retirement age, you best not have a whole lot you can't afford to lose tied to the stock market. I'm amazed that people close to retirement or already retired who keep a large portion of their retirement income in stocks.

Pretty much a basic no-no, unless you can afford the risk that comes with it.

 

[murphy1244]

Just look a the average CC balance, its going to be nasty.

 

[J F]

It's all about risk management, especially as we get older. I can't get my darn crystal ball working either.

 

[BleedingOrange]

Well, we could always commit a minor crime, go to the crowbar hotel for a couple of years, live totally free of the government, and repeat cycle again once your out. Anything 2 years minus 1 day is equal to an all expenses paid, 5 star hotel, including getting a day pass, to go play golf, if you choose. And they even get to choose their meals from a menu.
I don,t get choices like that, at home, even when I,m paying for it.

 

[brin]

It's all about risk management, especially as we get older. I can't get my darn crystal ball working either.

Jay...I play around scalping some stocks...nothing big , kind of a hobby . I agree with you, now is not the time for anyone nearing retirement to be invested in the market, bonds or anything like that..especially in a long position. You are right.