According to the Population Reference Bureau, 76.4 million Americans were born in the period 1946–1966.  For retirement, a majority of these Baby Boomers must rely on the 401(k) system or equivalent defined-contribution plans (where the worker does a majority of the savings and, in many cases, may receive matching contributions from their employer).  This is because the key retirement predecessors, “defined-benefit” plans (such as pensions), have increasingly become a thing of the past.

What’s troubling is the Quantitative Analysis of Investor Behavior 2014 DALBAR survey results indicate that investors are not very effective in managing their own investment portfolios.  And among other things, the survey shows that workers aren’t saving enough for retirement.  To quote Dr. Olivia Mitchell, Executive Director of Wharton’s Pension Research Council “more than half of U.S. retirees will rely on Social Security for more than 50% of their total income.”  This will sadly leave them with the painful choice of a significant drop in their standard of living, or even more concerning, the risk of outliving their retirement savings.  One simple conclusion, workers should seek help to review and plan for their retirement – a second set of eyes to help them get, or even stay, on track.