Last week, a partnership between Age Wave and Edward Jones conducted a survey with The Harris Poll, getting more than 12,000 respondents, the majority of which were retirees and pre-retirees, to answer questions on the keys to success in retirement. With Edward Jones as one of the initiators of the survey, being a major financial advisory firm, you could bet that one of the main takeaways was going to be the importance of financial preparedness for retirees. Indeed, the report revealed that six in 10 Americans who plan to retire believe they can afford a comfortable and secure retirement lasting more than 10 years.
To that we would just say what about the other 40%, a significant portion of the population if the survey sample was truly representative of the country? And among the confident 60%, who knows what toll persistent inflation (if it remains above the target 2% for longer than expected) will take on their financial security? And more than 10 years? Thankfully, many of their retirements will go much longer, but what then? And if seniors housing were to be an option for many of them, the product is getting more and more expensive, so their idea of a “comfortable” retirement may have to adjust.
The survey also defined what it called “course corrections,” or positive actions that retirees and pre-retirees can take to improve their retirements, which coalesced around four pillars: health, family, purpose and finances. Seniors housing can offer answers to all four, and getting that message out effectively will be key to not letting the penetration rate for seniors housing services fall in the face of perhaps more headwinds than tailwinds. The industry’s affordability issue will take a little more work, and new development. But there are options available, and perhaps more of an alliance between seniors housing providers and financial advisors at a company like Edward Jones could serve both the industry and seniors in getting the most out of their retirement.
