According to the retirement income specialist, the UK’s over 50s are showing resilience and a thirst for new opportunities in retirement.
The research shows an increase in the proportion of over 50s willing to take financial risk. And, far from planning to put their feet up, many of those in or approaching retirement want to learn a new skill or turn a hobby into a small business when they finish working.
Retirement Advantage’s survey shows a positive shift in the attitudes of over 50s towards their finances. Despite an uncertain outlook due to Brexit, the unexpected results of the UK general election and Donald Trump’s Presidency, the number of people willing to take a reasonable amount of financial risk increased from 24% in August 2016 to 28% in June 2017. The research also reveals a reduced gap between the desire for certainty and flexibility when people were asked about their priorities from retirement income. The proportion of those wanting certainty has fallen from 46% in 2016 to 45% in 2017, while the desire for flexibility has increased from 31% to 36%.
Andrew Tully, pensions technical director at Retirement Advantage, said: ‘It’s been a tumultuous year, both politically and economically. We expected to see a significant decline in retirees willing to take financial risk - battening down the hatches and taking a more pessimistic outlook in terms of their aspirations for retirement. However, the opposite is true: retirees are looking for more flexibility in their retirement finances and are increasingly willing to take some financial risk.’
Retirees in the UK are showing a great deal of determination and energy. The majority (57%) of over 50s want to use their time to learn a completely new skill or hobby. Interestingly, one in four (27%) plan to turn their interests or hobby into a new business venture in later life.
Andrew Tully continued: ‘The mindset of retirees in the UK is both ambitious and adventurous - further illustrating that the shape of retirement is evolving at pace. The need to understand an individual’s aspirations for the future is clearly key to creating a financial plan capable of delivering it. Financial Advisers are extremely well placed to provide guidance and products that will allow the right level of flexibility throughout retirement to allow people’s ambitions to change and grow. Advisers and product providers alike must strive to listen and understand what people want from later life in order to be successful in realising their vision of what it can be.’
To download a copy of ‘Expanding Horizons’ please go here
|
