Issue link: https://resources.envestnet.com/i/1527494
Retirement Planning is the Top Concern Much like the factors that drive Affluent Americans to seek professional financial guidance, financial priorities can change over time. Life stage and degree of affluence can focus investment and financial decisions on specific goals that reflect those factors. The research findings revealed that saving for retirement is by far the top primary financial goal for Affluent Americans across all generations (63%). The next two priorities were tied for build an emergency fund and pay off debt/loans. In terms of priority, retirement was an even higher top concern for both Higher- Earners and High-Net-Worth individuals than the overall affluent investor. A strong majority of the Affluent older generations (69% of Boomers and 79% of Gen X) are significantly more likely to identify their primary financial goal as saving for retirement. Interestingly, while younger generations have more time to start building their retirement than older generations—and gain the benefits of compounding that can go with earlier contributions—retirement planning is actually less of a priority for them than older generations in the study. Instead, Affluent Millennials were more than twice as likely as Gen X or Boomers to rank build/invest in a business as their primary financial goal—perhaps indicative of the entrepreneurial mindset among this generation. Do they think starting, building, and possibly selling a company is a better financial roadmap than choosing a more traditional career plan? Or maybe it is just a desire to be their own boss. Save for retirement Build an emergency fund Pay off debt/loans Save for vacations, travel, and discretionary spending Save for buying a house or home improvements Save for children, grandchildren, or helping extended family Build/invest in a business Save for a car purchase Save for education Donate to charity or nonprofit None of these Other 63% 43% 43% 39% 27% 27% 19% 15% 11% 9% 2% 1% What best describes your primary financial goals? Affluent Total; Top Three Ranked 71% of HNW individuals say retirement is their primary financial goal. 33% of Younger Millennials say their #1 primary goal is building or investing in a business, more than 6X that of Boomers (5%) ©2023 Envestnet, Inc. and The Center for Generational Kinetics. All rights reserved. 20