Two-thirds of both retirees and pre-retirees in the survey expressed confidence in their ability to plan for retirement, with more than 40% indicating that they have relied on their own research for retirement planning. Other top sources for planning included employers and friends and family members.
While more than 50% of both groups expressed confidence in having enough money in retirement, the top financial worries cited by respondents are unexpected expenses and being unsure of when to start collecting Social Security. Pre-retirees are more concerned about how to maximize their retirement savings and how much they need to save before they can retire.
This is an opportunity for financial advisors and plan sponsors to be more engaging in the process with consumers, the report pointed out.
Additionally, the survey suggests that younger retirees and pre-retirees want more tools to help them make their own decisions. They cited tools such as apps and platforms that account for second-acts careers; investment products that assume an “agile” withdrawal from full-time work; user-friendly resources that guide consumers who want to do it themselves; and more engaging presentation formats that help predict gaps in Social Security and Medicare, as well as how to handle unexpected bills.
Empower Institute is affiliated with Empower Retirement, a Denver-based plan administrator that oversees $665 billion in assets for more than 9.4 million retirement plan participants as of Sept. 30, 2019.