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Pre-retirees More Optimistic — Retirees Not So Much

The Wells Fargo/Gallup Investor and Retirement Optimism Index slipped eight points in the second quarter driven largely by a 17-point decline in optimism among retired investors.

Nearly nine out of 10 non-retired investors said they are optimistic they will achieve the American Dream versus 77% of retired investors. The optimism of non-retirees remained essentially unchanged, according to the quarterly survey of 1,036 investors, aged 18 and older conducted June 27 through July 9, 2014. 

The American Dream, as defined by survey respondents, includes:

  • the ability to afford a home (93%);
  • living comfortably in retirement (92%); and 
  • having meaningful employment (92%). 

The least cited attribute? Having a standard of living surpassing that of their parents, though that was still cited by more than three in four (76%). 

About half of the non-retired investors in the survey (47%) were either “extremely” or “somewhat” worried that they have not saved enough to be able to retire. About a third, (29%) were a “little worried,” while 24% were “not worried at all.”  Nearly half (46%) of all investor respondents were worried they won’t have enough money to last throughout their retirement, including 19% who were “extremely worried.” 

Overall, roughly one-third of investors (32%) sought more financial advice in the last two to three years, and nearly 40% indicated they would increase the advice they seek in the next two to three years. Retirement topped the list of reasons investors sought financial advice, cited by 71%. That outpaced divorce, at 64%, and death of a close family member (52%). 

While the focus of the survey was on personal financial investment advice, investors were twice as likely to have a dedicated personal financial advisor as they were to use an online website (44% versus 20%). This was particularly the case with retired investors surveyed, who said they relied more heavily on a dedicated personal financial advisor than on technology (53% vs. 11% for non-retired investors). On the other hand, 40% of non-retired investors had a personal advisor and 24% used an online planning or investing website. Those with assets of $100,000 or more were more likely to rely on advisors and technology, although they still relied much more heavily on a dedicated personal financial advisor (53% vs. 23%). 

For this study, the American investor is defined as any person who is head of a household or a spouse in any household with total savings and investments of $10,000 or more. The sample size was comprised of 71% non-retired and 29% retirees.