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By Staff Reporters
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The average balance in employer-sponsored savings plans last year was $112,572, well below the $141,542 recorded in 2021. That’s according to the latest annual report, “How America Saves,” from investment firm Vanguard, which serves as record keeper for defined contribution plans that, combined, have nearly 5 million participants with a median age of 43. Such plans include 401(k)s and 403(b)s, as well as a much smaller universe of plans that employers simply put money into for employees and then employees direct how that money is invested.
“Vanguard participants’ average account balances decreased by 20% since year-end 2021, driven primarily by the decrease in equity and bond markets over the year,” according to the report.
And, the numbers look worse if you consider the median balance, which was just $27,376 last year, down from $35,345 in 2021. The median in some ways is a truer read on the state of employees’ retirement savings since it is the middle point — meaning half of accounts have higher balances, and half have lower ones.
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According to the Social Security Administration, Social Security benefits make up about a third of the income of the elderly. In general, single people depend more heavily on Social Security checks than do married people. In 2023, the average monthly retirement income from Social Security is $1,827.
Keep in mind, though, that your Social Security benefits could be smaller. If you don’t have 35 years of work under your belt when you start claiming benefits, if your earnings were consistently low or if you claim benefits starting at age 62 rather than waiting until your full retirement age (or age 70, if you want maximum benefits), then you can expect a small monthly check. There’s also a gender gap in Social Security income. Women, because they tend to earn less and work for fewer years, draw smaller Social Security checks than men do.
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Filed under: "Ask-an-Advisor", Alerts Sign-Up, Experts Invited, Investing, Retirement and Benefits | Tagged: CBOE, DJIA, DOW, NASDAQ, retirement balance report, Retirement report, S*P 500, social security, social security benefits, SS, SS income, Vanguard | Leave a comment »
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