TCRS® was careful to define their terminology by generation (years of birth): Millennial -1979-1996; Gen X – 1965 – 1978 and Baby Boomer – 1946 – 1964. (Those birth years correspond to many other references of these generations, give or take a few years.)
We know that according to many surveys, Millennials enter the workplace with the highest level of student debt than any other generation. They are also the generation to have experienced (in the formative years) the September 11 events; the collapse of the real estate markets in many areas of the country; a recession economy; the collapse of the dot com bubble; as well as the most rapid and on-going technology advancements heretofore.
That is to say that “Millennial attitudes” have in some ways been “shaped” by certain events, just as prior generations have been “shaped” by Wars (World War 2, Korea and Vietnam) and The Depression.
The result according to the TCRS® survey (on-line survey) is - “ Millennial workers are an emerging generation of retirement super savers”. Why are Millennials likely to be saving so much? “Unlike their parents’ generation, most Millennials expect their primary source of income in retirement to be self-funded..”
What is interesting is that in contrast to the Baby Boomers, “Most Millennial workers (62 percent) envision a phased transition into retirement during which they will continue working, reduce hours with more leisure time to enjoy life, or work in a different capacity that is less demanding…”
I have often written about the Baby Boomer generation intention of working well past retirement age if they can or finding part-time or second career work in their retirement years.
And an astounding statistic from the TCRS® survey is that “Three out of four (76 percent) Millennial workers are discussing saving, investing, and planning for retirement with family and
Friends” and seventy percent are already saving for retirement. There is high 401(k) participation among this group and on average Millennials believe that they should save about $800,000 for retirement – their retirement goal- while others responded that over $1 million would be required.
Millennials want more retirement options, more advice about saving and more financial advice. Apparently this is the generation that is looking toward the future, and realizing that they live in a constantly changing world and are willing to seek the professional help that is necessary to plan for that future.
If you want to view the entire study by Catherine Collinson, including the analysis of the data and more details including recommendations and demographics– go to the TCRS® website and search “Millennial Workers: An Emerging Generation of Super Savers” by author Catherine Collinson and read the “About The Author” section.
About TCRS®: according to the website – “The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies® (TCRS) is a division of Transamerica Institute SM (The Institute), a nonprofit, private foundation. TCRS is dedicated to educating the public on emerging trends surrounding retirement security in the United States.” Their website is www.transamericacenter.org.”
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