Friday, August 27, 2010

Changes in Retirement Age

There's been some talk lately that Washington will deal with the upcoming shortfall in Social Security by raising the age which you can retire with full benefits from 65 to 70. But for many people, a later retirement age is already the reality.

Over the past 15 years, Gallup's polling has shown that the number of workers intending to retire at age 65 or older has risen from 44 percent to 61 percent. The number who intend to retire before they reach 65 has dropped from 50 percent to 29 percent. A big reason for these changes is the 401(k), which was designed primarily to give people more control over their retirement savings. But the market declines in recent years have reduced many people's assets to the point that they have no choice but to continue working.

That doesn't have to be the case, of course. With careful planning, most people can retain a certain measure of control over their retirement, including the age at which they'll cease working. If, like most Americans, you're concerned that you'll need to work longer than you'd like to, I'd be happy to talk to you about your options.

No comments:

Post a Comment