May 24, 2012
--- More than half of Baby Boomers and Generation Xers
are projected to have adequate retirement income to cover basic expenses and
uninsured health care costs. ---
Although 44% of Baby Boomers and Gen
Xers are still projected to be at risk of running short of money in retirement,
that is still 5% to 8% lower than what was estimated in 2003, according to the
Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). EBRI attributes the better
numbers to the increasing use of automatic enrollment.
lLower-income households remain at
greatest risk of having insufficient retirement income (87%), according to
EBRI’s Retirement Income Security Projection Model. Thirteen percent of
highest-income households are projected to be at risk. The analysis finds the
aggregate national retirement income deficit, taking into account current
Social Security benefits and the assumption that net housing equity is utilized
as needed, is estimated to be $4.3 trillion for all Baby Boomers and Gen
Xers.
The analysis also estimates
retirement savings shortfalls by age cohort, marital status and gender, for
both Baby Boomers and Gen Xers. The additional savings required for those on
the verge of retirement (Early Boomers) varies from approximately $22,000 (per
individual) for married households to $34,000 for single males and $65,000 for
single females.
A full report is available in the
May 2012 EBRI Notes at www.ebri.org.
Rebecca Moore