New research by AMP shows that most older people find it challenging to navigate the retirement system and lack knowledge about fundamental aspects of managing their retirement finances.
For people aged 50 and over the research found:
- 3 in 4 find the retirement system complex;
- 2 in 5 don’t know if they’ll be eligible for Age Pension benefits;
- 7 in 10 don’t know what an account-based pension is;
- 3 in 4 have not sought financial advice for retirement planning;
- 3 in 5 wish they’d started planning for retirement earlier in life, and
- 3 in 5 are ‘extremely concerned’ about the rising cost of living
“This lack of financial knowledge about retirement is despite Australia having one of the world’s highest GDPs and the fifth largest pool of superannuation savings in the world,” said their report.
AMP and its North investment platform have now launched a Retire with Confidence Whitepaper, which takes a closer look at the growing maturity of Australia’s superannuation system and the challenges faced by Australians heading into retirement.
But the message: it is worth educating yourself on the options well before you plan to retire.