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Franklin Templeton’s RISE Survey explores attitudes and concerns about preparing for and living in retirement. Learn more about what people are doing to build preparedness and confidence, while balancing various financial priorities.

Kickstarting Good Financial Habits

Getting Started

79%

of Canadians believe you should start saving for retirement by your 30th birthday

41%

of Canadians started (or plan to start) saving by then

Balancing Today’s Priorities with Tomorrow’s Goals

Competing short- and long-term goals can hinder progress. Of retired Canadians who feel they didn’t save enough for retirement:

1 in 3

blame their shortfall on prioritizing debt repayment over saving for retirement

1 in 4

blame an unexpected life event or expense for setting them back

Explore Top Three Priorities By Age

Financial priorities shift in Canadians’ working years

20s

  • Paying off unsecured debt
  • Saving for a home purchase
  • Having sufficient savings to cover unexpected expenses

30s

  • Having sufficient savings to cover unexpected expenses
  • Saving for retirement
  • Paying off unsecured debt

40s

  • Saving for retirement
  • Paying off unsecured debt
  • Having sufficient savings to cover unexpected expenses

 

50s

  • Saving for retirement
  • Having sufficient savings to cover unexpected expenses
  • Paying off unsecured debt

60+

  • Saving for retirement
  • Having sufficient savings to cover unexpected expenses
  • Paying off unsecured debt

Approaching Retirement

Focus on retirement income plans important in the decade before retirement

 

75%

are confident they understand how much they will need for expenses

73%

are stressed about potentially outliving their savings

48%

have never developed a retirement plan

Target Retirement Dates are Personal

More than half of working Canadians who are 65 years or older are still working because they enjoy it.

42%

of pre-retirees say they would postpone retirement if they didn’t have enough saved, but 1 in 5 retirees retired due to circumstances beyond their control, such as a lay-off or health concern.

36%

of pre-retirees say their target retirement date is based on an age-related milestone and the most popular reason they’ve chosen a specific age is societal norm.

Living in Retirement

Hindsight sheds light on how expensive retirement is

56%

“I should have saved more”

61%

“Expenses remained the same or increased”

For those who worry about life in retirement, professional advice may help

66%

of Canadian retirees say that they're stressed about potentially running out of money.

Canadians who work with an Investment Advisor, compared to those who never have, are...

  • More confident in their planned retirement date
  • Less likely to be stressed that they will outlive their money
  • Less likely to be stressed about whether they’ll have the retirement lifestyle they expect(ed)

Build your retirement preparedness one step at a time.

1. Set a financial strategy early

  • Build your emergency savings nest egg and don’t dip into it unless you really need to
  • Consider tools and resources that can help you with various financial priorities

2. Set clear goals and measure against them

  • Take a holistic view of your financial picture and develop an appropriate strategy from there
  • Educate yourself on the types of expenses you might expect in retirement

3. Prepare for the unexpected

  • Be prepared with a clear plan in case you are no longer able to manage your finances
  • Have a backup plan in case your needs and circumstances change