We’re living in ‘end times’ when you can’t retire on $1 million

Photo: MarketWatch/Quentin Fottrell/iStockphotoEveryone is ing for that magic number

The data suggest that inflation, longer lifespans and rising costs of living all play a role. “This data shows the true cost of retirement in America, which unfortunately many Americans are unprepared for,” said Adam Koprucki, founder of Real World Investor, an website. “A comfortable retirement requiring $50,000 per year for 25 years means saving over $1. 25 million, an amount that seems out of reach for many. ”My gut reaction is bably not dissimilar to many people’s response: We’re living in “end times” when you can’t retire on $1 million, particularly when most people in their 50s and early 60s have roughly half that

The most stark realization of this is in real estate

Cities, even a starter costs an average of $1 million, according to Zillow Z

Overestimating the amount of money you’ll need at age 67 may actually be a good thing

My third response: We constantly underestimate inflation

It’s the dry rot that eats away at your dream when you’re busy making plans for all that money you put aside for leisure during your retirement

Three things are sure in life: death, taxes and inflation

The latter has pushed up the amount of money you need in order to retire comfortably to $1. 26 million, according to the 2025 Planning & gress Study by Northwestern Mutual

Don’t miss: What on Earth is going on with the American consumer

When retirement goals hit $1 millionThe “magic number” for retirement surpassed $1 million in 2021, up from $950,800 in 2020, Northwestern Mutual said

Inflation surged in the months during the COVID-19 pandemic and people had even more cause to worry how much they would need to retire

For that reason, overestimating how much you’ll need at age 67 may actually be a good thing

Timing is everything, including when you start saving for retirement and when you answer a question how much you’ll need in retirement

The goal posts keep moving

If you’re ing the world events — from last weekend’s U

Bombing of Iran to the war in Ukraine and instability in the Middle East — you may give a different answer today than you would a week, a month or a year ago

Northwestern Mutual found that eight in 10 adults said their vision of retirement is different from how their parents viewed it

Nearly one-third said they expect their retirement to last over 10 years longer than their parents’ generation

People now expect more travel, more personally fulfilling activities, more time with friends and family and, yes, more work to pay for all of it

The first rule of retirement savings: There is no ‘magic number’ for everyone

There is no “magic number” for everyone

We are all living in our own version of “end times. ” Our expectations for retirement are altered by the hall of mirrors that is social media

This guide by GoBankingRates rattled through every U

In Hawaii, the answer was seven years, but in West Virginia, it would take 24 years

This factored in cost-of-living indexes for healthcare, housing, utilities, transportation, and groceries, among others

But it obviously doesn’t take account of Social Security benefits — the average payment currently hovers at $2,000 a month — Medicaid and Medicare; and other ly scenarios having your house paid off by the time you reach retirement age. (Roughly 63% of people have paid off their s by the time they reach 65, according to the Census Bureau. )Read: Medicare may actually be in more trouble than Social SecurityAspirations, inflation, are higherOne member of the Moneyist Facebook Group recently asked these questions the “magic figure” for retirement and what people believed was the new benchmark if it wasn’t $1 million

When they were growing up, they said $1 million was the golden key to a happy, carefree life. “If you had that amount of money you would just retire,” they said. “Now I feel $1 million won’t get you that far,” they added. “It is not the end all be all that it used to signify

Retirement is deeply personal and tailor-made for each person

The goal is to increase savings while we’re working, but also to ensure we are as close to debt-free as possible

Retirement finances are deeply personal and tailor made for each person

Some of the answers to that post were illuminating

One woman said, “I get $1,736 a month in Social Security Disability Insurance and am taking $1,500-a-month distribution out of a $300,000 IRA

Without my daughter I would be living in subsidized housing

I could take that long desired cruise to the U

Debatable, maybe, but normal

Many things and activities that used to be considered luxuries are now taken for granted

I’m not saying that these changes are good or bad

They just are. ”Don’t allow a magic number to make your retirement goals disappear

More from Quentin Fottrell:Trump and Elon Musk’s social-media fight offers a lessonRecession signs are out of control

Why America is obsessed with the price of eggs the Author Quentin FottrellQuentin Fottrell is MarketWatch's Managing Editor-Advice and The Moneyist columnist

You can him on Twitter @quantanamo

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