While conventional wisdom (and media reports) would lead you to believe that Canadian workers enjoy astounding socialist retirement benefits along with their health care coverage, the truth may be a little different.
A new LIMRA survey of pre-retirees in the Great White North found that, much like their American counterparts, a good percentage are also concerned about their ability to have a financially comfortable retirement – despite the wider prevalence of pensions and unionized employment, as well as the well-funded national Canada Pension Plan.
According to the study, 24 percent of Canadian pre-retirees (aged 50-65 and holding at least $50,000 in investable assets) lack confidence that they'll have the financial means in retirement, and will probably have a lower standard of living after they retire.
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LIMRA notes that this echoes research done in the U.S., where less than half of American pre-retirees surveyed said they felt confident about maintaining their desired lifestyle once they retired.
Canadian workers appear to be more aware of the amount of money they'll need to live securely when retired, but only 7 percent say they've developed formal written plans; one-quarter have never saved regularly for retirement and a quarter also are unsure when (or if) they'll be able to retire.
"Just as we have seen in the U.S., pre-retirees in Canada have not consistently saved or developed a formal plan for retirement," said Sally Bryck, associate research director, LIMRA Retirement Research.
Bryck says retirement advisors can play a big role in Canada – as they can in the U.S. – by identifying savings goals, developing plans for pre-retirees to manage their current finances and, most importantly, establishing a formal, written retirement plan that captures a long-term strategy for meeting their financial goals in retirement.
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