Over-55s have a financial 'annus horribilis'

posh*spice

The average person over 55 has savings of £11,153 in the bank today, down more than £4,000 from £15,262 one year ago.

The dramatic fall has occurred because people have been forced to dip into their savings to beat the effects of high inflation, which has pushed up the cost of living.

Insurance company Aviva, which interviewed 12,000 people for its Real Retirement Report, said that over 55s are “significantly poorer” than they were a year ago.

Levels of debt among the over-55s have also increased over the year, in another demonstration of the financial pressure that people are under.

The average borrowings of a person over 55 with debts has risen from £19,900 in March this year to £21,900 today, excluding money owed on mortgages, Aviva said.

One in ten people aged between 65 and 74 have no savings at all, Aviva found.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/pensions/8938024/Over-55s-have-a-financial-annus-horribilis.html


This bit is really, really scary :eek::eek::eek::eek:

Almost four in ten people over 55 who are “economically active” have yet to make any practical preparation for their retirement, the research found. Aviva also said that the typical age at which a person starts to actively think about their retirement is 48, while the typical age at which they start to act on these thoughts is 52.

and this :eek::eek::eek:

Meanwhile 11 per cent of people aged between 65 and 74 still have a mortgage to pay, meaning that they face high monthly bills even in retirement.

molerat

Scary, I am in the age group but luckily not one of those statistics

reheat

Hmmmm ... I'm obviously not an average over-55 then - I've got beggar all in the bank!

FATBALLZ

If 5% inflation causes them to spend an extra £4k a year they really need to re-evaluate their lifestyles.

ruggedtoast

This fails to mention that these boomers have robbed the younger ones blind with the cost of housing. Most of these have houses worth hundreds of thousands and they will squeeze every nut to get every penny from a poor ftb.

Pobby

ruggedtoast wrote: »

This fails to mention that these boomers have robbed the younger ones blind with the cost of housing. Most of these have houses worth hundreds of thousands and they will squeeze every nut to get every penny from a poor ftb.

Um, as a boomer I didn`t attend that meeting where we screwed the next generation. Many of my posts reflect my objection to the mad house price inflation. I am heartily against it.

Sure my house is "worth" loads more than it was 10 years or so ago. For my benefit it matters not at all. In fact hacks me off as the young relatives have no chance.

What does annoy me is that pension annuity rates have collapsed over the last 20 years, no decent interest rates on savings. Losing my job, and living in a world were, frankly, I have no idea how we get out of this mess.

DaddyBear

posh*spice wrote: »

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/pensions/8938024/Over-55s-have-a-financial-annus-horribilis.html


This bit is really, really scary :eek::eek::eek::eek:



and this :eek::eek::eek:

Unbelievable. That age group were born in the sweet spot. Free healthcare, free university education, cheap housing, good doses of wage inflation. Zero sympathy I'm afraid. Maybe they'll have to sell their million pound houses that they paid 20p for. :cool:

2010

DaddyBear wrote: »

Unbelievable. That age group were born in the sweet spot.

No such thing

---

you make what you can of your life.
Some do and some don`t want to, but moan about others saying they had it cushy.
Only in their imaginations I`m afraid.

Today`s indebted, spoiled, "have now never mind about later" are in the "sweet spot" but don`t realise it.
Years ago if people went bankrupt, hardly any by today`s figures, they held their heads in shame and were tainted for life.
Today, it`s a great joke to run up a mountain of debt, go bankrupt, and actually brag about because "it`s only for a year".

wymondham

ruggedtoast wrote: »

This fails to mention that these boomers have robbed the younger ones blind with the cost of housing. Most of these have houses worth hundreds of thousands and they will squeeze every nut to get every penny from a poor ftb.

Not so ... I would even argue that the young are not innocent in this. If people stopped buying inflated priced houses and stayed well away from schemes that prop up the market then prices may well be affordable by now.

How many posts each day do you see where young people don't even consider renting, but want a house NOW regardless of how ridiculous the situation and are willing to sign up for any dotty scheme put in front of them - ignoring the small print and the fact they have just added to the housing misery of others by keeping prices up....

People need to stop moaning and blaming the 'boomers' - the 'NOW' generation have a lot to answer for as well!

By the way, the value of someones home who purchased eons ago is irrelevent and does not help them in the slightest. They have had no, or little impact in putting up the value of their own home - it's people purchasing now that do that, so to all you lot who have purchased recently, probably on a scheme, in these high priced times maybe you need to think about the impact that YOU have just made by pushing up values?

Badger_Lady

According to that report, I am an average over-55. At age 28

It's pretty broad, isn't it? If you summarize the whole thing, it says "bunch of numbers; everyone's different".

Aberdeenangarse

I've had a 'annus horribilis' but think it's due to the curry I had last night:D