Retirement Planning
Although most Americans claim to have retirement savings, recent studies show that many investors have some catching up to do. In the 2006 Retirement Confidence Survey, conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Mathew Greenwald & Associates, 70% of workers surveyed said they and/or their spouses have saved for retirement. But among survey respondents age 45 and older, 43% report saving less than $25,000 (not including defined benefit plan assets).
Gone are the days when retirees' solely could rely on traditional pension plans and Social Security. While Social Security and defined benefits plans may still play a role in your retirement, the lion's share of your retirement income will come from your own savings and investments—like those you accumulate through employer-sponsored retirement plans, Individual Retirement Plans (IRAs) and other retirement accounts.
Magnifying that responsibility is the fact that life expectancies continue to rise, meaning your savings may have to finance a retirement lasting 20 years or more.
