Age Pension needed for retirement adequacy

27 August 2015
| By Malavika Santhebennur |
image
image
expand image

The average single Australian who does not get the Age Pension could expect to be just 46 per cent retirement ready, according to the CommBank Retire Ready Index.

The index also found single Australians who get the Age Pension is predicted to attain personal retirement savings equivalent to 61 per cent of what they need above the Age Pension for a comfortable retirement.

Couples on the other hand could expect to attain almost complete retirement adequacy, reaching retirement savings equivalent of 98 per cent of their comfortable retirement needs after receiving the Age Pension.

However, couples could expect to be only 60 per cent retire ready without the Age Pension.

General manager for retirement at the Commonwealth Bank, Nicolette Rubinsztein, said it was comforting to see couples aged between 65 and 74 were reaching the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia March quarter 2015 standard for a comfortable retirement of $58,444 per annum.

But the average single was expected to reach just $37,000 per annum, well short of the comfortable standard of retirement of $42,569 per annum.

"The Age Pension acts as a buffer and significantly boosts retirement savings, but clearly the results show that single Australians are not retiring with adequate levels of retirement savings to achieve a comfortable level of retirement," Rubinsztein said.

Single females are 30 per cent less retire-ready than men due to longer life expectancies, lower income levels during their careers, and career breaks during child bearing years.

The index revealed the average single female could expect to attain personal retirement savings equivalent to 47 per cent of her comfortable retirement requirements above the age pension, or just $35,000 a year.

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Add new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.

Recommended for you

sidebar subscription

Never miss the latest developments in Super Review! Anytime, Anywhere!

Grant Banner

From my perspective, 40- 50% of people are likely going to be deeply unhappy about how long they actually live. ...

3 months 3 weeks ago
Kevin Gorman

Super director remuneration ...

4 months ago
Anthony Asher

No doubt true, but most of it is still because over 45’s have been upgrading their houses with 30 year mortgages. Money ...

4 months ago

Michael Lovett, who left the investment firm just three months after launching its Vanguard Super offering, has taken up a chief executive role at an Australian asset man...

6 hours 55 minutes ago

As Australia gears up for the May budget, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has shed light on the significant global economic challenges that are shaping the nation’s fiscal decisio...

7 hours ago

A fintech leader has said that AI technologies will have profound implications for the superannuation sector....

7 hours ago

TOP PERFORMING FUNDS

ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND