4 ms·

My guess would be that most people working in their 70s (or 80s!) would very much like to retire, but can't. I'm 65 and wish I could have retired 10 years ago.

by johnea 2y ago

My guess would be that most people working in their 70s (or 80s!) would very much like to retire, but can't. I'm 65 and wish I could have retired 10 years ago. After 40 years in industry I'd really rather be doing something else. This seems like a direct consequence of eliminating pensions.

ryandrake 2y ago
I genuinely feel for the people who had to navigate the transition from defined-benefit to defined-contribution. When it happens halfway through your career, you are likely unprepared and haven't saved enough. But for those workers where defined-contribution has been the way their entire lives, they went into it with all eyes open and should have saved sufficiently. Everyone who entered the workforce after, say, 1995 or so, knows that their retirement will be entirely self-funded through savings and investment. It's not a mystery. You don't get to wake up at 75 one day and act surprised that you can't retire yet.
- falcolas 2y ago
  People today are being told they need to save around $4m to retire (70% of income for 18 years). That's about $2k a month for 37 years (ideally with sub 3% inflation and 5-6% returns on your investments throughout). That's a lot of money, even at an above median income. It also doesn't account for having to pay for inflated housing and college loans. As for people looking to retire today, given the market issues which reset more than a few 401k portfolios and the unexpected lack of job wage growth (compared with inflation and/or housing), it's not too surprising. Live longer than expected, or get a bad medical bill, and it's really unsurprising.
  - salawat 2y ago
    Peple in their 30's today, may never get the chance to retire. Not if things keep operating the way they do.
    - ryandrake 2y ago
      I mean, almost everyone will retire from work unless they die at their desk. We should stop thinking about retirement as if it is necessarily a binary switch where you "voluntarily deciding to stop working when old." We can be forced into retirement due to layoffs and a tough hiring market. We can be forced into retirement due to sickness or needing to care for a family member. Our bodies wear out, we get less cognitively sharp. It's not about whether or not we get the chance to retire--we will all eventually have to. So these people in their 30s today need to be planning for how they will deal with it, not worrying about whether they will deal with it.

by johnea 2y ago

ryandrake 2y ago

I genuinely feel for the people who had to navigate the transition from defined-benefit to defined-contribution. When it happens halfway through your career, you are likely unprepared and haven't saved enough. But for those workers where defined-contribution has been the way their entire lives, they went into it with all eyes open and should have saved sufficiently. Everyone who entered the workforce after, say, 1995 or so, knows that their retirement will be entirely self-funded through savings and investment. It's not a mystery. You don't get to wake up at 75 one day and act surprised that you can't retire yet.

falcolas 2y ago
People today are being told they need to save around $4m to retire (70% of income for 18 years). That's about $2k a month for 37 years (ideally with sub 3% inflation and 5-6% returns on your investments throughout). That's a lot of money, even at an above median income. It also doesn't account for having to pay for inflated housing and college loans. As for people looking to retire today, given the market issues which reset more than a few 401k portfolios and the unexpected lack of job wage growth (compared with inflation and/or housing), it's not too surprising. Live longer than expected, or get a bad medical bill, and it's really unsurprising.
- salawat 2y ago
  Peple in their 30's today, may never get the chance to retire. Not if things keep operating the way they do.
  - ryandrake 2y ago
    I mean, almost everyone will retire from work unless they die at their desk. We should stop thinking about retirement as if it is necessarily a binary switch where you "voluntarily deciding to stop working when old." We can be forced into retirement due to layoffs and a tough hiring market. We can be forced into retirement due to sickness or needing to care for a family member. Our bodies wear out, we get less cognitively sharp. It's not about whether or not we get the chance to retire--we will all eventually have to. So these people in their 30s today need to be planning for how they will deal with it, not worrying about whether they will deal with it.