Married baby boomers are better retirement savers than their single cohorts, but they could still use help from financial advisors, according to the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI).
IRI conducted a survey of 228 singles and 575 married people between the ages of 50 and 66 and found that the married baby boomers were more confident of meeting their retirement needs than the single people.
However, not quite half of the married people have consulted a financial advisor compared to 38 percent of singles.
“Considering that just over half of the boomer couples have not met with a financial advisor, significant opportunities remain to meet the needs of this key demographic,” says Cathy Weatherford, IRI president and CEO. “Previous IRI research has found that those who consult a financial advisor are more confident in having a financially secure retirement. So an important component to boosting retirement confidence among this group is to encourage them to sit with an advisor and map out a holistic plan for a secure retirement.”
Almost 40 percent of the married respondents are confident of having enough savings to live comfortably in retirement compared to 28 percent of singles, according to the survey.
Almost 56 percent of the married people have calculated a retirement goal compared to almost 41 percent of singles.
Married people are more likely to have retirement savings, with nearly 82 percent reporting having savings compared to 66.6 percent of singles. Only 13.7 percent of married people prematurely tapped into their retirement account during the past year, compared to 21.4 percent of singles.
Two-thirds of married people continued to contribute to their retirement accounts during the past year, while 56 percent of singles did so.