The Retirement Crisis: Is It Real?

According to a PBS survey, 92 percent of Americans think there’s a retirement crisis in the country.

But is there? And if so, how big is it?

There are new retirement studies released seemingly every day, and the data is often conflicting.

For example, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 2014 Retirement Readiness Rating, 41 to 43 percent of Americans are at risk of running out of money in retirement. But Aon Hewitt’s 2012 The Real Deal Study found only 30 percent of workers at large employers are on track to retire comfortably and on time. Meanwhile, Boston College estimates that 53 percent of Americans are at risk of not being able to maintain their current standard of living in retirement.

So, which study is correct? Are two-thirds of us facing uncomfortable retirements? Or are two-thirds of us doing just fine? There’s no clear-cut answer. Each study takes different variables into consideration and bases its assumptions on a different set of savings benchmarks.

No matter the exact numbers, though, all of the studies seem to agree that a substantial number of Americans are at risk of a financially unstable retirement. To avoid overburdening our Social Security and Medicare systems, it will be necessary for most people to have alternative investments or financial products.

As a producer, you’re in a unique position to help with this. Annuities, for example, could help your clients put money away now for a steady stream of income¹ later, during their non-working years.