Oddly, most respondents feel they are not financially better off than their parents were at their same age (56 percent), but they also feel that their life and career options are better than their parents' were (61percent).(Photo: Shutterstock)
They don't have savings and most couldn't deal with a financial emergency of $500—but they plan to retire by the age of 60 and plan on living till age 80.
That's why Varo Money describes them in its research as “curiously optimistic” about their futures, particularly since it's anticipated that a couple retiring now at age 65 will need some $280,000 just for medical expenses over the course of their retirement.
A more detailed breakdown of just how unrealistic that optimism is includes a look at how much people have managed to save.
While 55 percent couldn't meet an emergency with $500 cash, 45 percent don't even have a savings account, 30 percent of those who do save have less than $5,000 and only 33 percent of those who have savings have accumulated $5,000 or more.
Yet 59 percent of respondents under 60 say they plan to retire by age 60, despite that lack of savings.
And while 37 percent plan to live into their 80s and 20 percent think they'll make it to their 90s, 43 percent of all those who couldn't even pay for a $500 emergency don't have health insurance either. One wonders how they plan to get so old.
And it's not that they think they need all that much money—well, some of them don't think they'll need much. An astounding 31 percent think that they'll be happy on an income of $25,000–$49,000 a year.
Nearly a third of millennials, on the other hand, assume they'll be living on $100,000 a year when they do retire—despite the fact that they're even worse at saving than the overall population; 61 percent of millennials don't have $500 to cover an emergency expense, and millennial women are even worse off, at 65 percent.
Such unrealistic numbers may arise from some other unrealistic attitudes, of course. Close to half—41 percent—say that enjoying themselves every day is most important when it comes to money, while 35 percent say that saving for periodic big events or purchases like a vacation is most important.
Less than a quarter give priority to retirement; just 24 percent say that saving for retirement is most important.
In addition, some may be following a koan that demands belief of two contradictory thoughts at the same time, since most respondents feel they are not financially better off than their parents were at their same age (56 percent), but they also feel that their life and career options are better than their parents' were (61percent). READ MORE:
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Marlene Satter
Marlene Y. Satter has worked in and written about the financial industry for decades.
