The Blubber

Per Northwestern Mutual

A report from Northwest Mutual found that Americans had to work almost a year and a half to retire. While workers in the US used to retire earlier due to the economic situation, the study found that Americans now have to settle for working until age 64.

As part of the 2022 Planning & Progress Study by Northwestern Mutual, it was found that Americans see a 20% increase, compared to a year before, in how much they think they need to experience a comfortable retirement.

The Harris Poll conducted the 2022 Planning & Progress Study on behalf of Northwestern Mutual on Feb 8-17, 2022, which included a study with a pool of 2,381 Americans aged 18 and older.

US adults at the age of 18 and above think that they need at least $1.25 million to be able to experience that comfortable retirement. Meanwhile, the study found that the average retirement savings of Americans have dropped from $98,800 in 2021 to $86,869 in 2022, resulting in an 11% decline.

Northwestern Mutual executive vice president and chief customer officer Christian Mitchell highlighted how inflation and market volatility were two major factors that affected the financial uncertainty of a lot of Americans.

Mitchell: "We've also seen upticks in spending year-over-year not only as a result of inflation, but also as people have resumed a sense of normalcy in their lives following the earlier days of the pandemic."

Despite Americans' retirement age increasing from 62.6 to 64 per consensus, 43% say that they don't think they'd be financially capable of retiring when the time comes. 33% of respondents said they have not proactively taken action to address their retirement concerns.

Taking into account the effects of the pandemic, 25% of individuals said that they might retire later than they initially wanted to. Only 15% were optimistic and said that they plan to retire earlier.

Mitchell: "It's one of those questions on so many people's minds – how long should I expect to work in order to save enough for retirement?"

Resources:

Northwestern Mutual

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