The 2008 Retirement Confidence Survey ®: Americans Much More Worried About Retirement, Health Costs a Big Concern

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1123642


This paper presents key findings from the 18th annual Retirement Confidence Survey® (RCS), a survey that gauges the views and attitudes of working-age and retired Americans regarding retirement, their preparations for retirement, their confidence with regard to various aspects of retirement, and related issues. The 18th wave of the RCS finds that Americans' confidence in their ability to afford a comfortable retirement has dropped to its lowest level in seven years, reflecting worries about health costs, the economy, and home values. Decreases in confidence occurred across all age groups and income levels but was particularly acute among younger workers and those with lower incomes. However, this decreased confidence does not appear to have affected the way most Americans plan and save for retirement. Moreover, the RCS finds that faulty assumptions still hinder a realistic assessment of the preparations needed to ensure a financially secure retirement. In addition, the survey found that about half of workers (47 percent) say they and/or their spouse have tried to calculate how much money they will need for a comfortable retirement, up considerably from the low point of 29 percent measured in 1996. As before, the 2008 survey finds that doing a retirement savings calculation is particularly effective at changing worker behavior: 44 percent who calculated a goal changed their retirement planning, and of those almost two-thirds (59 percent) started saving or investing more.

Retirement Confidence Survey articles

HEALTH CARE, ECONOMY HAVE MANY WORRIED ABOUT THEIR RETIREMENTS

San Jose Mercury News (SJ) - WEDNESDAY, April 09, 2008

GOLDEN RETIREMENT DREAMS TURN A FOGGY GRAY

St. Paul Pioneer Press (ST) - SUNDAY, April 13, 2008

By: Gail MarksJarvis

WELCOME TO A TIME OF PESSIMISM ON RETIREMENT IN AMERICA

Sun, The (Baltimore, MD) (BS) - SUNDAY April 13, 2008

By: Gail MarksJarvis

DREAMS ABOUT RETIRING WITHER

St. Petersburg Times (PE) - WEDNESDAY, April 09, 2008

By: HELEN HUNTLEY

WORKERS WORRY OVER RETIREMENT SAVINGS

Capital Times, - WEDNESDAY, April 09, 2008

By: EILEEN ALT POWELL Associated Press