Even among the affluent, retiring early can be dangerously risky. For families who make $250,000 or more per year, retiring two years early would require an annual lifetime savings rate 2 percent higher or a 15 percent cut in projected retirement spending.

These were the figures cited by Katherine Roy, chief retirement strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, speaking via a Webinar sponsored by the American Bankers Association Tuesday.

It’s not a desire for leisure making people retire early. Over half of seniors who retired early told a pollster last year they did it because of health problems or a disability while 23 percent cited the care of a family member. Seventeen percent said they did it because of downsizing or bankruptcy by their employers.

Only 32 percent said they stopped working because they were able to afford an early retirement; 19 percent said they wanted to do something else.