No one wants to look back on the past with regrets. But for many retirees, this is the reality.
Don’t feel depressed at this new start of the year, but it can be useful to hear the regrets of retirees—especially if you’re approaching retirement yourself.
Suzanne Ricklin, vice president of retirement solutions at Nationwide Financial, told Yahoo Finance: “Despite improvements in savings habits and financial engagement, many retirees are concerned about some of the decisions they made early in life to prepare for retirement. Regret. “More than eight in 10 workers over the age of 45 regret not taking retirement savings more seriously when they were younger. “
Here are five of retirees’ biggest regrets:
Less than a quarter of retirees are very confident they will be able to maintain a comfortable lifestyle during retirement, according to a new report from the nonprofit Pan American Center for Retirement Research.
In the survey, median household savings for retirees, not including home equity, was estimated at just $71,000. The median home equity for retirees is estimated at $114,000. But one in four retirees has no home equity.
Researchers say more than two-thirds of retirees wish they had continued to save more, and half wish they had not waited so long “to start caring about saving and investing for retirement.”
“Many retirees today lack the awareness, expertise and resources they need to successfully prepare for retirement,” Catherine Collinson, CEO and president of the Pan American Institute, told Yahoo Finance.
“Their careers began 40 or 50 years ago, or even longer, long before the advent of 401(k) plans and society’s requirement that people self-fund the majority of their retirement income,” she said.
For many women, this shortfall stems from starting late. Research from Corebridge Financial found more than six in 10 retired women wish they had started saving for retirement earlier – with only around a quarter starting saving and investing between the ages of 18 and 29. Four in 10 retired women say they didn’t start prioritizing their finances and retirement planning until they were 41 or later, and 20 percent said they haven’t started yet.
What?
“All of this speaks to the importance of saving early in the workforce,” Terri Fiedler, president of retirement services at Corebridge Financial, told Yahoo Finance. “Our survey clearly shows that. It’s the number of retired women who know what they know now about the importance of saving in retirement.” The first piece of advice I would give my younger self about planning.
The latest report shows that nearly three in 10 retirees start collecting benefits at age 62, the earliest possible age. (Getty Creations) ·Douglas Sacha via Getty Images
One of the biggest mistakes people make with Social Security is taking a much lower benefit too early. You can improve your odds of not blowing through your savings by delaying taking Social Security benefits, which will significantly increase your monthly check over decades.
But many people don’t — or can’t — wait. According to the Transamerica report, the average age at which retirees begin receiving benefits is 63 years old. Nearly three in 10 retirees begin collecting benefits at age 62, the earliest age possible, resulting in significant reductions in benefits. Only a small proportion (4%) of retirees wait until age 70 to retire.
This is how math works. If you have the flexibility to delay claiming benefits, the benefits you gain by waiting can be substantial. Begin taking benefits at full retirement age (or FRA) (age 66 or 67) and delay retirement until age 70, and you can earn delayed retirement credits. These mean your benefits increase by about 8% each year until you reach age 70, when points stop accruing.
While there are obviously good personal reasons to claim benefits early, such as poor health or financial constraints, psychological stress often prompts retirees to take their checks sooner rather than later.
Suzanne Shue, a marketing professor at Cornell University, said perhaps the biggest factor is a person’s psychological ownership of Social Security benefits.
Nearly half of retirees say debt is a stumbling block to their ability to save for retirement, according to a Pan Am report.
According to a survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), almost seven in 10 people have outstanding credit card debt once they retire. That’s up from four in 10 four years ago.
One-third of respondents said their spending is well above what they can afford in 2024, nearly twice as many as 2020 respondents.
Nearly six in 10 retirees are retiring earlier than planned, according to Transamerica (Getty Creative) ·WC.GI via Getty Images
Sometimes the decision to retire is a regret. About a third of retirees regret not working longer, said Olivia Mitchell, co-author of a paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
The financial advantages of working past traditional retirement age are obvious: more years of income and savings without having to dip into retirement savings, so those funds can continue to be invested and grow, and the ability to delay filing for Social Security.
However, sometimes the choice is made for you. More than half of EBRI survey respondents retired early due to reasons beyond their control, such as health problems or disabilities, or changes in their company, such as layoffs, closures or reorganizations.
According to Transamerica, nearly 6 in 10 retirees are retiring earlier than planned. Only one in five retires early because of financial means.
Preston Cherry, a certified financial planner, told Yahoo Finance that retirees often regret not being emotionally prepared and planning for the retirement transition and next steps.
“The answers to these questions include: What do I do next? How do I do that? How do I readjust to my hobbies and learn about myself?” he said.
“They regret that it took them so long to allow themselves to retire and step away from the identity they might have been accustomed to – whether that was their business or corporate job.”
Overall, retirees were in a good mood, had close relationships with family and friends, enjoyed life, had a positive outlook on aging, had a strong sense of purpose, and had an active social life.
In fact, Transamerica data found that more than four in 10 retirees have experienced improvements in their enjoyment of life and happiness since exiting the workforce. Additionally, many people are actually spending more time with family and friends and pursuing their hobbies than they expected.
According to Corebridge research, more than half of retired women consider their financial situation to be good or very good, compared with just 38% of non-retired women.
“One thing that stands out in the data is that retired women are more likely to describe their financial health positively than women who are still working,” Field said. “Surprisingly, many women who have retired seem to be more likely than women who are still drawing a salary to Women are more secure about their finances.”
The runway ahead of everyone is different, and how to create a life without regrets is not a constant thing.
“Retirement is highly personal,” Collinson said. “People retire at different ages and for different reasons.”
Have questions about retirement? Personal finances? Is there anything career-related? Click here to leave a message for Kerry Hannon.
More retirees express surprise – they are happier in retirement than they expected (Getty Creativity) ·Tom Merton via Getty Images
What about goals for 2025: “Retirees with financial regrets should develop a written financial plan,” Collinson says.
Consider living expenses, debt repayment, savings and investments. Then look at how your asset allocation might be split between bonds, cash and stocks to balance it based on your risk tolerance, age and goals. Review sources of guaranteed retirement income, health care needs, insurance protection, taxes, and possible needs for long-term care.
Don’t forget about inflation. “Hopefully, inflation can be brought back under control, but that always creates potential risks for retirees and their purchasing power.”
She added that only 19% of retirees have a written plan. “But just because you’re retired, that doesn’t mean you can’t do some retirement planning to understand your situation and give yourself a boost.”
Kerry Hannon is a senior columnist at Yahoo Finance. She is a career and retirement strategist and the author of 14 books, includingTaking Control Over 50: How to Succeed in the New World of Work” and “You’re never too old to be rich.” follow her blue sky.
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