In a time of crisis America looks for leadership and finds …Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
Schwab Retirement Plan Services examined the issue of financial stress among the populace, and claims saving enough money for retirement is the most common source of financial stress.
It’s something that could help drive the upcoming presidential election results, according to the company, with an “overwhelming majority” (77 percent) of respondents to its survey saying the ability to save enough for retirement is “a major public policy issue.”
Participants were split, though, on which presidential candidate would be better for their own economic security. Fifty-two percent said Democrat Hillary Clinton has the edge on pocketbook issues compared to Republican Donald Trump (48 percent).
In the survey, Clinton fared better with Millennials and women while Trump’s support came from Baby Boomers and men.
Building adequate retirement savings was cited most often (40 percent) as a significant source of financial stress in respondents’ lives – even more than job security, credit card debt or monthly expenses.
According to Schwab, the 401(k) is either the largest or only source of retirement savings for most respondents. Ninety percent called the 401(k) a “must-have” benefit and would think twice before accepting a job that didn’t offer one.
However, merely participating in a 401(k) plan is not enough. Only half of respondents felt totally on top of their 401(k) and more than one-third were stressed about choosing the right 401(k) investments.
Many participants could do more to maximize the benefits of a 401(k), but face obstacles. For example:
- Despite experts’ advice that participants should periodically increase their 401(k) contributions, one-third have not done so or have actually decreased their contributions in the past two years.
- 32 percent say the number one barrier to saving more is an unwillingness to sacrifice things that add to their quality of life, like dining out or vacations.
- Only 10 percent of participants are currently using professional 401(k) investment advice.
According to the survey, 401(k) participants felt that having professional assistance may help improve their financial situations, with the majority of participants saying they’d like personalized investment advice for their 401(k) plans.
The survey showed that participants also want help setting specific benchmarks for their retirement, including:
- Calculating how much money they need to save for retirement (46 percent)
- Determining at what age they can afford to retire (43 percent)
- Figuring out what their expenses will be in retirement (39 percent)
- Anticipating tax expenses in retirement (38 percent)