America’s Seniors Find Middle-Class ‘Sweet Spot’

[SunSeeker]

 

Most Americans suffered serious losses during and after the recession, knocked off balance by layoffs, stagnant pay and the collapse of home values. But apart from the superrich, one group’s fortunes appear to have held remarkably steady: seniors.

Supported by income from Social Security, pensions and investments, as well as an increasing number of paychecks from delaying retirement, older people not only weathered the economic downturn that began in 2007 but made significant gains, a New York Times analysis of government data has found.

As a result, America’s middle class is graying.

People on the leading edge of the baby boom and those born during World War II — the 25 million Americans now between the ages of 65 and 74 — have emerged as particularly well positioned in the nation’s economic timeline. While there are plenty of individual exceptions, as a group they are better off financially than past generations and may well enjoy a more successful old age than future ones, even those merely a decade younger.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/06/15/business/economy/american-seniors-enjoy-the-middle-class-life.html

[blue neen]

1. This is true for older seniors,

but there are plenty of 55 to 65 year olds who, for numerous reasons, haven't done much saving.

[SunSeeker]

2. You got that right.

Like the article says, seniors just 10 years younger than that 65-74 age group (i.e. 55 year olds) are in a different boat. And those younger seniors are sweating it out hoping to get to 65 when medicare finally kicks in before having expensive health issues.

Seems like that older group was the last to benefit from employer-provided pensions. Then those got phased out, replaced by 401 plans or nothing at all. Young folks are in the worst shape. They are saddled with ridiculous student loan debt before they even get started.

[blue neen]

5. So true about the employer-provided pensions.

Many 55 year olds don't have them.

As you said about the healthcare, I know a number of people who are almost wishing their life away so they can be on Medicare. It's sad.

The 50 to 60 crowd was hit badly by the economic downturn, with no similar-paying jobs to take the place of the ones they lost. A double whammy--no pensions and no decent jobs.

[Recursion]

3. The average retirement age is up to 62. It was 55 ten years ago.

I never really know what to make of those numbers.

[Art_from_Ark]

7. Once again, you pull something out of... nowhere

and pass it off as fact.

http://crr.bc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/IB_11-11-508.pdf

As of 2011, the average retirement age for men had never been below 62 since 1962 (Figure 2). And the last time it was 55 for women was in 1977-78 (Figure 3).

[Recursion]

11. Sigh. Google is your friend

http://www.gallup.com/poll/168707/average-retirement-age-rises.aspx

[Art_from_Ark]

12. You cite a freaking POLL

while I cite a STUDY

But if you want to go the "Google is your friend" route,

"As a result, the average retirement age has increased only slightly in the last 10 years: to 64 for men and 62 for women."

http://crr.bc.edu/briefs/the-average-retirement-age-an-update/

[Recursion]

13. Yes, I cited a controlled sample asking people's expected and actual retirement ages

You're not one of those "sampling is bunk" people, are you?

Anyways, it's a long-running topline indicator Gallup has tracked for 25 years now.

[Art_from_Ark]

14. No, I'm one of those "independent research is more reliable than opinion polls" types

"As a result, the average retirement age has increased only slightly in the last 10 years: to 64 for men and 62 for women."

http://crr.bc.edu/briefs/the-average-retirement-age-an-update/

[Recursion]

15. Munnell is looking at a different thing than Gallup

Munnell is asking people retiring this year, "how old are you?"

Gallup is asking retired people, "at what age did you retire?"

I found the answer to Gallup's question interesting.

[Art_from_Ark]

16. Once again

"According to Census Bureau data, the average retirement age for men (the age at which their labor force participation rate falls below 50 percent) rose slowly between 1985 and 2008, from a low of 62 to about 64. It has held there ever since. For women, average retirement age reached 62 in ’08 and was still at that level in 2013. "

http://www.benefitspro.com/2015/02/19/fewer-americans-delaying-retirement

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. Your poll says the average age was 59 in 2004, and 60 in 2005

That is not '55 ten years ago'.

[Skittles]

4. exactly what it says

People on the leading edge of the baby boom and those born during World War II — the 25 million Americans now between the ages of 65 and 74 — have emerged as particularly well positioned in the nation’s economic timeline. While there are plenty of individual exceptions, as a group they are better off financially than past generations and may well enjoy a more successful old age than future ones, even those merely a decade younger.

[blue neen]

6. It's weird.

I have friends in the decade younger group who seem to think they're still 35...buying boats, motorcycles, quads. These are not wealthy people; they're two income families who work very hard. They just don't seem to get it that it's long past the time to save for their retirements.

It's the old ant/grasshopper story.

[Skittles]

20. I have a theory

there's been a giant shift in retirement security options and some people just do not have received the message......they think they'll have the retirement their parents had........I agree, it is very serious and some people just DO.NOT.GET.IT.

[1939]

8. Supply and demand

The combination of closing the spigot on immigration in the early 1920s, the low depression era birthrates, and the World War II and post war industrial expansion made labor scarce and there was a lot of competition for warm bodies and the corporations were willing to pay for it in terms of salaries and benefits.

The baby boom, massive legal and illegal immigration, automation and off-shoring have created a labor surplus and what corporations are willing to pay for labor has declined.

[WinkyDink]

9. Voting in Republicans was no small factor.

[magical thyme]

10. agreed. we were born in the darkest part of the 1st boomers' shadows

and have been there ever since.

[bklyncowgirl]

18. My husband and I both are/were govenment workers.

I lost my job a few years ago and haven't found anything in my field since--no one wants an aging librarian. Fortunately I am of age to collect my pension money. My husband has over 30 years with the city and can retire when he wants. We're moving to a less costly part of the country once we sell the house and hope to start a small business. Some younger person will then get a start at a new career with his job.

That's the way it should be in a civilized society.

Other people my age are not so fortunate. My brother in law had a good job in the private sector, now he works as an IT consultant struggling from gig to gig--he's long exhausted his unemployment benefits. If he wasn't renting out rooms in his house he'd be broke. I doubt the poor guy will ever be able to retire until SS kicks in. Ironically, he's a right wing Republican so he will be voting for people who want to cut his Social Security benefit or make him wait until he's seventy to retire. We joke that we may end up having to adopt him.

[magical thyme]

19. I lost my career when high tech crashed/then 911 hit...just before I turned 50

plus had the misfortune to become the target of a sex offender. After 2 years of frantically trying to re-start my career in the aftermath of 911, and 3 years of 24x7 harassment by criminal and his gang of thugs, I had to pull up stakes and leave town on the advice of the police.

I moved 2 states away to start over, but there was no work over min wage, and very little of that. So after a couple years of rejections, I went back to school for degree in health care and graduated just in time for the lab tech field to crash in my area.

In the mean time I burned through my life savings except my home, saddled myself with a pile of student loans with no way to pay them off. Worked 2 p/t jobs for the last 3-4 years and finally will be able to collect SS this fall so quit one of the p/t jobs 2 months ago.

And just as I thought I could semi-retire working just 1-2 days/week tops, somebody announced they're retiring and suddenly I'm getting more work than I can keep up with at the hospital and am falling behind at home and having yet another summer ruined.

If I could fix up my home I could possibly sell it, downsize and retire. But I don't have time now to fix it.

Feeling pretty desperate this am...