Jan 16: BEST FROM THE BLOGOSPHERE
January 16, 2023
Some optimism amongst older Canadians about the future
Despite frequent doom and gloom chatter regarding the ongoing waves of boomer retirements, some older Canadians say they are quite optimistic about the future.
That’s one of the findings of new research from the National Institute on Ageing. Investment Executive’s Maddie Johnson recently reported on the latest NIA findings.
The report found that 63 per cent of Canadians over 50 surveyed are “feeling positive about aging,” the article notes.
“What’s more, the oldest Canadians in the survey — those 80 and over — felt the best about growing older, expressing a more positive attitude toward most aspects of aging compared to those aged 50 to 79,” Johnson reports.
This is good news, the article continues, since it comes at a time when “Canada is facing unprecedented demographic realities with Canadians aged 65 years and older representing the fastest-growing segment of the population.”
Why are older Canadians optimistic?
Seventy per cent of respondents reported they had “strong social networks they could rely on,” the article notes. Sixty per cent said they were “socially engaged” and 72 per cent felt their financial resources were “adequate,” the article continues. Sixty-eight per cent felt they had “access to the healthcare and community support services they needed,” and 89 per cent “had confidence in their ability to age in their own homes,” Investment Executive reports.
There were a few points of concern noted in the research, the article reports.
Fifteen per cent of respondents reported being in poor health, and 26 per cent said their retirement income was “inadequate,” the article reports. As well, of the survey respondents who were still working, only 35 per cent said they were going to be able to “afford retirement when they wanted it,” and 37 per cent said they were not “in a position to financially afford to retire,” the article states.
Nineteen per cent said they were “stretched” for income and seven per cent reported “having a hard time,” the article adds. Four in ten, the article concludes, were at risk of “social isolation.”
These last points of an excellent Investment Executive piece are important. You’ll need to develop new social networks after you leave the workforce. It was for this reason that Mrs Save with SPP decided to sign us up for line dancing, and after six years, we are not only reasonably competent line dancers but have a new network of friends we hang out with.
As for the financial side, those of us who are working and who have access to a workplace pension program are probably not going to be worried about the adequacy of their retirement income in the future. If you’re on your own as far as retirement savings goes or if your employer is looking for a pension option for you, why not partner up with the Saskatchewan Pension Plan? More than 32,000 Canadians belong to this open defined contribution plan — why save on your own when you can tap into SPP’s pension expertise and low-costed pooled investing? Check out SPP today!
Join the Wealthcare Revolution – follow SPP on Facebook!
Written by Martin Biefer
Martin Biefer is Senior Pension Writer at Avery & Kerr Communications in Nepean, Ontario. A veteran reporter, editor and pension communicator, he’s now a freelancer. Interests include golf, line dancing and classic rock, and playing guitar. Got a story idea? Let Martin know via LinkedIn.
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