By J. Randell Tiongson
In a short survey conducted, we considered the responses of 100 persons. Their ages ranged from 21 to about 50 with the average age between 30 and 35. Interestingly, there were more males who responded than females. Average income was also diverse, ranging from minimum wage earners to millionaires.
Most of the respondents preferred to retire earlier that the usual 60 or 65 years old, with the average target retirement age at about 50 years old.
Many did not see themselves working for long and expressed the desire to get out of the rat race earlier than the mandatory retirement age. Ironically, while majority wanted to retire early, many did not have any retirement program in place.
Most agreed that they may not have enough money to retire comfortably. As for when’s the best time to start planning, they were unanimous in stating “the earlier, the better,” at least from the time one earns an income or when one reaches 30 years old.
When asked where they would invest money for their retirement, the top three answers were real estate, time deposits, and savings. There were very few respondents who mentioned more sophisticated instruments like life insurance, mutual funds, unit investment trust funds, stocks, bonds, or structured notes.
Ironically, quite a number of respondents came from the financial services industry. If this is an indication of the habits of the average middle class Filipino, we can surmise the largely unsophisticated leanings of the sector when it comes to investments. No wonder then that our capital market is highly undeveloped, with most of the funds being invested in short term savings and time deposits.
Respondents talked about immediate gratification, the mañana habit, lack of funds, low income, increasing expenses, wrong priorities, short-term thinking, even lack of knowledge, as reasons to explain why they thought Filipinos did not take retirement planning seriously.
One respondent, in fact said: “Filipinos are not too keen on preparing for their retirement maybe because of what we call the extended family. Further, most parents are too busy preparing for their children’s future and they tend to forget to prepare for their old age. They will simply say, ‘If I can provide a good future for my children, they will look after me during my old age.’”
This has been referred by some as ‘Filipino retirement planning’, and this mentality is something that needs to be reconsidered.
With regard to consulting with a professional, nearly all respondents thought it was a good idea, even acknowledging they will need help in this important area. This survey is a good reminder for all of us to take retirement planning more seriously.
Source: Inquirer.net
In a short survey conducted, we considered the responses of 100 persons. Their ages ranged from 21 to about 50 with the average age between 30 and 35. Interestingly, there were more males who responded than females. Average income was also diverse, ranging from minimum wage earners to millionaires.
Most of the respondents preferred to retire earlier that the usual 60 or 65 years old, with the average target retirement age at about 50 years old.
Many did not see themselves working for long and expressed the desire to get out of the rat race earlier than the mandatory retirement age. Ironically, while majority wanted to retire early, many did not have any retirement program in place.
Most agreed that they may not have enough money to retire comfortably. As for when’s the best time to start planning, they were unanimous in stating “the earlier, the better,” at least from the time one earns an income or when one reaches 30 years old.
When asked where they would invest money for their retirement, the top three answers were real estate, time deposits, and savings. There were very few respondents who mentioned more sophisticated instruments like life insurance, mutual funds, unit investment trust funds, stocks, bonds, or structured notes.
Ironically, quite a number of respondents came from the financial services industry. If this is an indication of the habits of the average middle class Filipino, we can surmise the largely unsophisticated leanings of the sector when it comes to investments. No wonder then that our capital market is highly undeveloped, with most of the funds being invested in short term savings and time deposits.
Respondents talked about immediate gratification, the mañana habit, lack of funds, low income, increasing expenses, wrong priorities, short-term thinking, even lack of knowledge, as reasons to explain why they thought Filipinos did not take retirement planning seriously.
One respondent, in fact said: “Filipinos are not too keen on preparing for their retirement maybe because of what we call the extended family. Further, most parents are too busy preparing for their children’s future and they tend to forget to prepare for their old age. They will simply say, ‘If I can provide a good future for my children, they will look after me during my old age.’”
This has been referred by some as ‘Filipino retirement planning’, and this mentality is something that needs to be reconsidered.
With regard to consulting with a professional, nearly all respondents thought it was a good idea, even acknowledging they will need help in this important area. This survey is a good reminder for all of us to take retirement planning more seriously.
Source: Inquirer.net
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