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Uncertain future
ANU survey finds most people not financially prepared for retirement .
By Wade Zaglas
Retirement . It ’ s a time most people look forward to with bliss .
It ’ s traditionally been the time when the mortgage is paid , the kids are finally off your back , and one can look forward to sipping wine while watching the sun setting over Uluru . ( Well maybe that ’ s a cliche , but you get the gist .)
But according to a survey ANU conducted of nearly 3500 adults in early 2021 , most of us ( 55.7 per cent ) “ who aren ’ t yet retired are worried [ they ] won ’ t have enough savings to live comfortably when they stop working ”.
ANU ’ s Centre for Social Research Methods conducted the study , which also asked Australians whether current JobSeeker and superannuation arrangements were sufficient .
“ In early 2021 , as Australia was continuing to emerge from the COVIDrecession , the majority of Australians who weren ’ t currently retired thought that they will not have enough money when they do ,” Professor Nicholas Biddle said .
“ Of those Australians who say they are worried about not having enough money in retirement in 2021 , females , people who hadn ’ t finished year 12 , and those
living outside capital cities were most concerned .
“ Our study shows a large increase since the last time we asked this question in 2015 , when only 39.6 per cent of Australians thought they would not have enough money to live comfortably .”
While the percentage of Australians who think they ’ ll have enough savings for retirement has barely changed since 2015 , the percentage of people who are definitely sure they will have enough money for their ‘ golden years ’ has shifted dramatically .
“ We have seen a very large decline in the per cent of people who said they definitely would have enough money – 21.3 per cent in 2015 compared to just 6.1 per cent in 2021 ,” Biddle said .
The study found that it ’ s a much different situation for those Australians already in retirement , with nearly three-quarters ( 71 per cent ) saying they will “ definitely ” or “ probably ” have enough savings to live out their retirement comfortably .
The survey also asked respondents whether the current arrangements for JobSeeker and superannuation were appropriate , as well as how COVID-19 had affected their financial situation .
Despite the recent rise in JobSeeker payments , most of the survey participants thought the current unemployment benefit of $ 620.80 per fortnight for single people with no children was still too low ; on average , respondents believed $ 711 per
The majority of Australians who weren ’ t currently retired thought that they will not have enough money when they do .
fortnight for a jobseeker in the same circumstances was “ more appropriate ”. On the topic of superannuation , more than half of Australians believe the current legislated rise from 9.5 per cent to 12.5 per cent in 2025 was appropriate . However , the study also found that more than 20 per cent of participants believe the superannuation rate should be higher than 12 per cent .
“ Asked whether they would use their superannuation for other purposes if they could access their savings early , 47 per cent of people said yes ,” the survey found .
“ Of those , 26.9 per cent said they would use it to purchase a home or reduce their mortgage , while 10.2 per cent said they would use their savings to meet current living expenses .
“ Young Australians aged 18 to 24 years and older Australians ( aged 55 years and above ) said they would be less likely to use their superannuation for a home purchase , whereas those born overseas in a non- English speaking country said they would be more likely to .” ■
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