Is there an actual retirement “number,” and if so, what is it? The frustrating answer is it depends.
Expected lifespan, income replacement rates, healthcare, lifestyle, taxes and yes, geographic area are just a few of the many variables. Personal Capital, an Empower Company, recently took a hard look at the latter, and specifically how much each state had in average retirement savings among its citizens.
After a year of unprecedented volatility driven by a global pandemic, contentious election, and social strife, some results surprised, others did not, but all were illuminating about the current state of retirement saving and investing.
The Northeast fared particularly well, yet the nation’s capital, not so much. Here are the top and bottom five, according to Personal Capital’s ranking.
Connecticut (Best)
With $523,568 in average retirement savings, the Constitution State rings in at No. 1. No doubt its swanky residents are skewing the numbers higher, but not much of a surprise it did so well.
New Hampshire (Best)
The Granite State has a solid $494,562 in savings. Make it in Massachusetts, spend it in New Hampshire, as they say, which seems to work out just fine with its libertarian, leave-me-alone attitude.
New Jersey (Best)
The Garden State has got the green with $489,664. Its proximity to the New York and Philadelphia financial centers and miles-upon miles of beautiful beaches can’t hurt.
Alaska (Best)
Alaska seems to have struck gold with an average of $489,070. It’s cold for a good part of the year, with little else to do then sit tight and not spend money.
Virginia (Best)
Virginia is for lovers, and also retirement saving. Old Dominion ranks fifth at $468,579 in Personal Capital’s study.
Mississippi (Worst)
Spell it five times fast in order to distract from their $340,894 average. They’re the best of the worst, which we guess is something, and they also have football and Faulkner, but a higher ranking would be nice.
Oklahoma (Worst)
“Ooook-lahoma, where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain,” and where the average retirement savings suffer at $340,389. Sing, dance and save more.
Washington D.C. (Worst)
Not a good look for a world-class capital. The Beltway will probably have to tighten since it only has a $325,671 Washingtonian average. It’s a city that’s known to spend and not to save, so we shouldn’t be too surprised.
North Dakota (Worst)
Franking doesn’t mean frick for the citizens of North Dakota, or at least for their retirement savings. There’s not much to extract from the results, other than they’re bad at an average of $310,766.
Utah (Worst)
Rumor has it that the Beehive State was the only one to not officially fall into the Great Depression, supposedly due to the industriousness of its residents. It’s a surprise, then, that Utah is the absolute worst on the list at $300,392.
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.