Plenty of people join fitness clubs to keep their health in check, so it stands to reason that people might buy a “financial wellness membership” to boost the health of their finances.
Today New York-based Silvur, which bills itself as “the first and only super app dedicated to helping Baby Boomers reach their retirement goals,” introduced what it calls a “Financial Wellness Membership” to provide those aged 50+ with planning tools and education to help them achieve peak financial wellness leading up to and in retirement.
Americans ages 50+ represent the wealthiest segment of the U.S. population, but their retirement is more complex than ever. As this age demographic is expected to live 10 years longer than the prior generation, Boomers generally face a longer retirement than their parents, and are the first to navigate a post-pension world. In announcing the new membership, Silvur says many find themselves ill-equipped to face retirement and, despite their generational wealth, this age group is more afraid of running out of money in retirement than they are of dying.
“We are excited to launch the Silvur Membership. A new solution has been a long time coming. The incumbent brand leaders in the retirement space support the 1980s retirement dream, not the 21st-century dream,” said Rhian Horgan, founder and CEO of Silvur. “They fail to capture the dynamism and excitement of the next generation of soon-to-be retirees, and really help these individuals prepare for and succeed in modern retirement.
The membership, Horgan said, changes this. “It provides a holistic view of a Baby Boomer’s financial health, bringing together their cost of living, assets, benefits and individual factors in one place, offering a pulse of where they stand financially.”
Membership (the app is available for download on iOS in the Apple App Store) provides enhanced access to Silvur’s “Retirement Score,” a tool that calculates the financial health and wellness of people 50+. The technology leverages over 3,000 data points and shares tips on how to make their money last longer, and what actions to take to secure more than $61,000 worth of additional tax savings across the rest of their lifetime. To date, the company claims it has generated over three million personalized Retirement Scores.
Through its user research, the company found that a user’s most worrisome, unmet need in retirement planning was a way to understand the cost of living in various places around the country. A report conducted by the Center for Retirement Research shows about 47% of retirees move post-retirement. Research shows the average annual retirement costs for couples can vary drastically in different states.
With this in mind, Silvur created a “Cost of Living Calculator” to show members how their Retirement Score changes based on where they choose to live. It factors in elements like taxes, healthcare costs, living expenses and more.
For example, if a member were to move from New York to Florida, they would learn it would add approximately seven years to the life of their savings. This increase is driven by Florida’s decrease in taxes and living expenses, and balanced against expected higher health care costs in Florida. The calculator can make these projections between any two locations in all 50 states.
Additional membership features include an enhanced Social Security calculator that shows how to maximize Social Security benefits and how much longer that will make their money last; a healthcare cost calculator (which shows the effect of those costs on the longevity of their retirement savings); and a digital storefront offering discounts from leading retailers and new digital service providers to help members save more money to achieve their financial goals.
The company also announced plans to soon launch a “retirement school,” which will provide a retirement education program dedicated to demystifying “government speak” and helping members ensure they are receiving their benefits in full.
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Veteran financial services industry journalist Brian Anderson joined 401(k) Specialist as Managing Editor in January 2019. He has led editorial content for a variety of well-known properties including Insurance Forums, Life Insurance Selling, National Underwriter Life & Health, and Senior Market Advisor. He has always maintained a focus on providing readers with timely, useful information intended to help them build their business.
