Americans usually have a positive outlook on retirement, but a recent poll showed that many people still have a lot of work to do before they can quit their jobs.
For example, 47 percent of the people who answered the survey said that their savings would last them 10 to 20 years after they retire. Those numbers look good until you realise that people should be planning for the next 30 years. In the same way, nearly half of all respondents from Generation X said they plan to use pensions to help pay for their retirement. Even though the plan seems good, experts warn that many pension plans in the U.S. are in danger of going bankrupt. Also, less than a third of businesses now have pension plans.
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) paid for the poll to learn more about how the American public saves money and plans for retirement. The group runs a website called 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy (www.360financialliteracy.org) to help people deal with money issues at different points in their lives. Here are the results of some more polls:
How to Pay for Retirement
Younger Americans don't plan to depend on Social Security as much as older Americans do when they retire. Nearly six out of ten people age 55 and up plan to use Social Security to pay for their retirement. Only 41% of Americans under 55 are counting on Social Security to help pay for their retirement. People under 55 are more likely to depend on their own savings and investments than on Social Security.
Costs of College
About one-third of American families have a child who wants to go to college in the next five to ten years. One quarter of these parents plan to use their own savings to pay for their child's college, and the other quarter hope that their child will get scholarships to cover tuition. Surprisingly, only 13% of respondents plan to use private student loans, and only 12% plan to use financial aid to pay for their child's college.
Financial Concerns
Americans' biggest financial worries are rising energy and heating costs, as well as medical bills they can't pay for because they don't have insurance (15 percent each). Close behind are retirement and the price of gas, which each make up 13 percent. Education costs are also a worry, with 9% of respondents worried about paying for their child's college education and 7% worried about paying for their own.
41% of Americans under the age of 55 say they will depend heavily on Social Security when they retire.
