A survey sponsored by Mackenzie Investments shows the baby boom generation (people between the ages of 40 and 60) in Canada has to overcome investing fears and work with professional advisors to assure them of satisfying retirements. The next decade is a critical time for this group as they enter their peak income earning years and savings period of their lives.
Key findings among Canadians between the ages of 40 and 60 include:
Still not saving enough
– ; ; Over half (56%), say they are not saving enough money for retirement right now;
Lack of personal expertise
– ; ; Almost two-thirds of people (62 %) in this age group rate their personal ability in choosing the right investments as fair or poor;
Professional advice important
– ; ; 60% of boomers believe working with an advisor will result in higher investment returns. And for this same age group, 50% think working ;with an advisor lessens stress and anxiety.
Inadequate planning
– ; ; When asked to identify the greatest threats to investing success, 29% said not starting earlier, 24% said not understanding choices and 24% said not setting enough aside each year; and,
Personal finances still not a priority
– ; ; When asked how they would spend an extra five hours each week, spending more time on personal finance research ranked last on a list of nine options. In fact, spending extra time on personal finance ranked behind sleeping and working, in addition to more popular choices such as leisure activity and time with family.
« Financial goals are not met overnight and too many Boomers still admit they haven’t planned adequately, » said Charles Sims, President and CEO of Mackenzie Financial Corporation. « We’re concerned about this, especially given how important the next ten years are for their retirement planning. »
Investor confidence grows with an advisor
« While most Canadians are aware of the benefits of financial planning, it’s clear that many still haven’t fully embraced the focus and decision making they need right now, » adds Sims. « We encourage them to take the first steps in seeking professional financial advice. »
Working with an advisor correlates to higher retirement saving confidence according to the survey. In the survey, 67% of Boomers without an advisor believe they are not saving enough. With an advisor, that number drops to 47%.
Decisions getting harder
44% of boomers say making investment decisions has become harder than 10 years ago. Only 16% say it has become easier. When asked if they understand the tax differences owning income trusts as compared to owning dividend-paying stocks, 61% said they did not and another 10% were not sure.
Reading the financial pages of newspapers and Web sites for information about investing drew mixed results. Although 30% said they learned from this activity, another 22% said it raised more questions than answers and 17% described it as boring.
Helping investors choose an advisor
Mackenzie has made available on its web site (www.mackenziefinancial.com) tools to guide investors in selecting a financial advisor. They are designed to stimulate discussions and understanding to create open and positive relationships between clients and advisors. Fully 29% of people between age 40 and 60 said they are not confident in their ability to choose a financial advisor. Another 49% indicated they are « somewhat confident. » These tools from Mackenzie are designed to boost confidence and help people develop plans that meet their needs.
The survey of 1061 Canadians was conducted by Leger Marketing between September 1 and 6 using the online research panel. Boomers made up 655 people in the sample. The results are accurate +/- 3.0% 19 times out of 20.
About Mackenzie
Mackenzie Financial Corporation (Mackenzie Investments) (www.mackenziefinancial.com), founded in 1967 and now with over $47 billion in assets under management, provides investment management and related services for over one million Canadian investors and over 30,000 financial advisors. Mackenzie Investments is part of Canada’s premier wealth management firm, IGM Financial Inc. (TSX:IGM), the country’s largest manager and distributor of mutual funds and other managed assets, with approximately $91 billion under management.
For further information, please contact: Catharine Marion, Environics Communications, (416) 969-2809, cmarion@environicspr.com
Laura Vallis, Environics Communications, (416) 969-2781, lvallis@environicspr.com
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Source: Mackenzie Financial Corporation; IGM Financial Inc.
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