Wednesday, December 3, 2003

Americans need to do a better job planning for retirement

How do you picture yourself spending your golden years? Doing all the things you dreamed of doing, or still working to make ends meet? Most Americans would rather play golf, hike, travel or relax on the beach, but to make that possible, it’s going to take planning.

According to the National Retirement Planning Coalition’s (NRPC), Sept. 2002 Retirement Readiness Study, 77 million baby boomers are fast approaching retirement with insufficient plans. Another study found that nearly two-thirds of respondents saved for vacations or to pay down credit, while fewer than half saved for retirement.

Plus, Americans are generally unaware of how much money they’ll need to save for retirement and how they are going to make that money last as long as they do, research from the NRPC shows.

“A lot of people think if they’re doing well financially while they’re working they’ll be fine in retirement, but that’s not necessarily a guarantee,” said John Walters, executive vice president at Hartford Life, a subsidiary of The Hartford Financial Services Group. “A combination of your pension, savings accounts and Social Security used to be enough for you to retire comfortably, but that may no longer be the case for future retirees.

“With life expectancies continuing to rise, Americans will likely live 25 or 30 years in retirement — and they are worried about running out of money,” added Walters. “For guaranteed retirement income, many people will find annuities a better option than trying to ration their life savings to last as long as they live,.”

Diversification is a great idea. Investing in savings accounts, money markets, mutual funds, 401(k)s, IRAs, and variable annuities allows you to reach short term and long term savings goals.

“Annuities are the only type of investment that can guarantee retirement income for life, though the amount will vary depending on your account value and the age at retirement,” said Walters.

While life insurance provides a benefit to your heirs if you die too soon, variable annuites hedge against longevity risk. They guarantee you income for your entire life, from the day you retire until the day you die.

So how much money will you need to comfortably retire? Hartford Life has an online calculator to help you come up with the all-important number. You can find it by logging onto www.hartfordinvestor.com. When you get to the site, scroll down to the tab that says Education Center on the left-hand column and click on calculators. Then follow the link that says “what will my income be after I retire.”

After you come up with the number, Walters recommends you take it to a licensed broker, financial planner or other professional investment representative who can advise you on ways to help you to reach your retirement savings and income goals — and the golden years of your dreams.

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