Falling short: 60% of Aussies believe they won’t have enough money for retirement

Growing concern about a shortfall in the amount of money they will have available at retirement is incentivising more and more Australians to focus on slashing their debt and boosting their savings balance a new report has found.

The most recent Quarterly Australian Wealth Sentiment Survey of 2,000 Australians released by MLC indicated that 21% of respondents actively plan to pay off more debt in the next three months, while 26% are motivated to put more away into their savings.

The MLC report found that 32% of Australians described themselves as having “far from enough” money for retirement - an increase from 24% since the end of 2016 - with 60% believing they weren’t likely to have enough.

“With people reporting they are concerned about having enough in retirement, it may be that Australians are taking a closer look at debt and implementing savings strategies that will help improve their overall financial position,” said Lara Bourguignon, MLC’s General Manager of Customer Experience and Superannuation.

“While economic indicators are quite strong, at an individual level it’s apparent that Australians aren’t feeling confident about their finances, and this may be causing anxiety about retirement.”

According to the report, Australians believe $1,142,000 (excluding the family home) is the golden figure at which they would be able to retire comfortably.

However, many of the respondents reported that they were likely to fall almost 50% short of that figure - suggesting that they were more likely to have $638,000 (excluding the family home) saved up by retirement.

“What’s interesting is that respondents said they need over $1 million to retire on, but even small super balances help in retirement, so instead of being worried and fearful, people should feel motivated and empowered to take the little steps that make a big difference,” said Ms Bourguignon.

One small step any Aussie can take is by ditching their $4 daily coffee or another vice and putting that money towards their savings. Even going without that coffee just once a week would amount to over $200 saved over the course of a year.

For other great simple ways to save click here, or head on over to the Mozo savings accounts hub to compare the top high-interest savings accounts on the market which could boost your balance even more.