A new survey suggests that increased longevity is giving people a chance to rethink their assumptions about retirement — and saving for retirement.
More than 9 in 10 respondents (93%) to “The Gift of Time” Allianz Life survey agreed that people will need to be more thoughtful about how they plan for longer lives, and the same percentage agreed that major changes would be needed in how people think about funding longer lives. In addition, a full 91% agreed that with 30 extra years — which the Stanford Center on Longevity reports is the average increase in life expectancy in the United States compared with 100 years ago — it’s not enough to just put aside money for retirement. Instead, people would need a much clearer, more specific plan that falls outside the confines of traditional financial planning.
When asked what increased longevity means for both themselves and the human race as a whole, nearly three-quarters said either, “I think it could open a lot of new and interesting possibilities for people’s lives” (49%) or “it’s a wonderful development” (25%). Only 5% of respondents classified living 30 extra years as “terrifying.”
However, despite embracing the concept of longevity, Americans are not feeling financially prepared to live to 100 and beyond. Concerns about money and a lack of clear planning remain the biggest barriers keeping people from taking risks and following their dreams.
The study, which explores how attitudes and opinions about longevity vary between generations, found that Millennials are the generation most overwhelmed and underprepared to live an additional 30 years.
What Would You Do?
While most survey respondents (56%) said they would “travel extensively” or “live in a different place” (35%) with their 30 extra years, nearly a quarter noted they would “take more risks in life,” a common theme among the one-third of Americans who said they regretted many of their major life decisions.
Included among those top regrets are:
- not following their dreams (39%)
- not taking risks with their career (38%)
- not taking risks with their lives in general (new jobs, going back to school, etc.) (36%)
- not being more gutsy in their choices and doing things they really wanted to do (35%)
That said, a third (32%) of Americans say they regret the major choices they made in their lives, such as when/where they went to school, the profession they chose and when/where they worked.
And perhaps even the amount they have saved for retirement, or when they started saving.
