There have in the past years been several tectonic shifts that are re-defining retirement income planning, and ultimately the financial adviser’s role and responsibilities, which now include retirement risk management in addition to
asset management. To help better understand what advisers will be facing, Nationwide explored investors’ and advisers’ expectations for retirement, and the diferences
between the two. They conducted two surveys: one of individual investors and another of financial advisers, asking questions about retirement outlooks, retirement risks, and retirement income advice.
This research has uncovered a clear “planning gap,” or a significant diference in what investors think and how advisers actually create a plan for generating retirement income. The gap exists across all income ranges and wealth levels and clearly marks the need for
advisers to emphasize the importance of managing potential post-retirement liabilities as well
as assets.
Results show that advisers plan for a retirement that will last eight years longer than the typical investor believes. At
the same time, advisers also plan that investors will require a monthly income during their
retirement that is 15 percentage points greater than the amount that the typical investor
estimates. It is worth noting that only 45% of investors indicated they have a written financial
plan in place, which suggests informal estimates have shaped many of their projections.
To read the full report, including graphics, click here.