Australians still need better retirement planning
Recent research conducted by Roy Morgan Research has confirmed that most Australians are still not paying adequate attention to their superannuation and retirement until they are nearly in their 50s.
The research found that:
- 70% of individuals 21 years and younger feel retirement is too far away to plan for.
- 7 of individuals between 22 to 24 years feel retirement is too far away to plan for.
- 4 per cent of individuals between 35 to 39 years still believed they were too far from retirement to plan for.
- And in the critical pre-retirement years between 50 to 54, 16.6 per cent still considered that retirement was too far away to bother about planning.
The research suggested that the superannuation industry and the government had roles to play to make people aware of the benefits of retirement planning, including creating a more stable set of conditions and rules for superannuation that will improve confidence in being able to plan for the long-term.
Roy Morgan Research industry communications director, Norman Morris concluded:
“Frequent changes or speculation of changes to the rules governing superannuation do not instil confidence in what for most people is a 40-plus year time frame. There is also a need to improve people’s understanding of superannuation: from its terminology, adequacy and advantages, to its fees and financial advice”, and that
“Currently there is uncertainty regarding what the government is likely to do regarding rule changes for the taxation of superannuation. Factor in the volatile share market and the complex terminology used in superannuation, and this makes long-term financial planning for individuals a rather precarious occupation,” Morris said.
