Less than a decade remains before the oldest baby boomers turn age 62. By this age, half of their elders have typically retired. The baby boom transformed the youth culture and family life forever. What should we expect as this generation heads for yet another life style change?
This project reviews what researchers have learned about the baby boom's dreams, expectations, and resources for retirement, with a special focus on the implications of this research for the financial planning profession. The research suggests that baby boomers envision a more active and challenging retirement than any previous generation has experienced. However, the results also suggest that this generation will find itself as dependent on the financial planning profession as it was on its nannies and personal trainers at other stages of life. Most working Americans - boomers included - don't know how much they will need to live comfortably in retirement, how much of this amount they already have, or what they can do to make their resources more closely match their needs.
The good news is that baby boomers still have time to make changes that will make a difference. The resulting article, published in the March 2001 issue of the Journal of Financial Planning, concludes with some tips for financial planners as they usher baby boomers toward a satisfying, and probably revolutionary retirement.
