Is this article a joke? 1 in 4 workers have less than $1,000 saved for retirement

[MooseBucks]

1 in 4 workers have less than $1,000 saved for retirement

And 50% has less than 25k

[97guns]

It's definitely plausible, when I was working the majority of the guys I worked with could not afford to mis a day of work, it would literally throw a wrench into their monthly budget

[disneysteve]

Not a surprise at all.

Look at current SS beneficiaries. 20% of married couples and 40% of singles get at least 90% of their income from Social Security. This means that they had little to nothing saved.

[kork13]

You also have to consider that the article was using one of the broadest possible measures available -- total workers in the U.S. That includes everyone from the 70 y/o part timer to the 15 y/o summer lot attendant. Also, they used a simple mean (average), which means that for every person with $1M in the bank, a single person with nothing saved cuts the average in half.... And there's alot of teenagers & 20-somethings with nothing saved.

Certainly there is a tragically significant number of people with far too little saved. But the numbers they present here are very, very incomplete. Just remember... There are lies, damn lies, and statistics. This article appears manipulated to cast the most shocking light as possible.

In short: while possibly factual, it's clearly written to intentionally mislead. This is click bait.

[bjl584]

Reading Katie's (the author of this article) Twitter feed, it looks like she should join this forum and learn a few things before continuing to write articles for CNN.

As kork said, this article is misleading. It's bad out there, but maybe not to the degree that this article leads one to believe.

[snafu]

If it takes alarming articles to encourage people to participate in a retirement program, I don't care if they skew the facts. I wish individuals beginning their 1st employment were encouraged to sign up as the early years offer the longest time for sums to compound as well as ability to withstand major drops in valuation like 2008 - 2010.

[disneysteve]

If it takes alarming articles encourage people to participate in a retirement program, I don't care if they skew the facts.

Clearly a lot of people aren't saving enough (if at all) so encouraging and educating them is critical. It would be nice if they could do it with accurate data but in today's world of click bait and sensationalism, maybe that is what it will take to get through to people.

[97guns]

When you consider that 1 in 7 people in America are on food stamps this article is not far fetched at all

[disneysteve]

When you consider that 1 in 7 people in America are on food stamps this article is not far fetched at all

Exactly. When you earn far above the national median, as most of the regulars here do, it's easy to forget that that isn't how most of the population lives.

51% of individuals earn under 30K.
40% earn under 20K.
Folks making that little aren't concerned about retirement savings. They're concerned with keeping a roof over their heads and putting food on the table.

[cornfieldj]

No - I've been writing for and about finances for about 5 years now, and these numbers get trotted out all the time. Often they're collected by the non-partisan organization EBRI (Employee Benefits Research Institute), a very reliable group.

If you spend any time on personal finance/Reddit you see some shocking stories. People are really challenged, sometime by their own mismanagement, and sometimes by a family member or complete lack of knowledge.

To be honest, a very close relative of mine is terrible with money. I have always been a bit of a saver. I don't make much, and I'm not rich... but if you don't spend much it's VERY helpful. This person often made a lot. But spent a lot. Also panicked and sold during financial crisis. Had some bad luck, too.

Anyway, I totally believe that some people have nothing (or $1,000) saved for retirement.

[MonkeyMama]

Working in the financial industry, I'd say those numbers are very real. & I have more higher income clientele and live in a higher-wage city. Income doesn't seem to have much to do with it. Pretty much no one saves *anything* for retirement.

[disneysteve]

Something else I've encountered is people who don't see the point in saving for retirement because they don't expect to live to see it. I have patients who are now in their 70s and even 80s who are still working. When we've spoken about it, they've admitted that they never expected to live this long and didn't prepare for it. Maybe their parents and other relatives all died young. Maybe they had some medical issues at a younger age that they thought would shorten their lifespan. Maybe they lived a hard life (drugs, alcohol, etc.) and just didn't think they'd still be around. Now here they are stuck working full time at 75 because they've got nothing saved and can't subsist on SS alone.

[cornfieldj]

Well, I don't come from a very long-lived family (tho one grandmother did live into her 80s). So I don't expect to live that long. But I still put money away. I am hardwired that way.

I figure, worst case scenario, I leave something for my two sons -- one of whom will need lifelong care and support.

Best case scenario, I'll be around for a while and can even take a trip now and then.

My husband and I both expect to work in some way - as much to keep from being bored/depressed as for the money - for as long as possible. But... I'd love to some day not have to wake up and be somewhere.

[97guns]

You can Work hard now and reap the rewards later or reap the rewards now and work hard later

[TexasHusker]

I'm 50 and I don't have one dime saved for retirement.