Many Don’t Know Average US Life Expectancy, Which Can Hinder Retirement Planning

Many adults don’t know the average life expectancy in the U.S., which could be a problem when it comes to retirement planning.

A study from the TIAA Institute and the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center released Monday asked respondents how long they think retirees live to see how many are saving enough to be secure when they stop working. And the numbers were off.

About a quarter of U.S. adults surveyed said they simply don’t know how long a typical 65-year-old will live, while 35% underestimated how long. The study said a man who is currently 65 can expect to live to 84 and while a woman can expect to live to 87.

“For so many people, understanding how long they can potentially live during retirement is among the biggest barriers to attaining retirement security,” TIAA CEO of Retirement Solutions Kourtney Gibson said in a release.

While it might not seem like a critical figure to know offhand, knowing life expectancy can help with saving and planning for the future. A

Nationwide Retirement Institute survey from March showed that most Americans are underestimating their chances of living to 100, and are not saving for the financial demands of living so long.

According to new research from Nationwide Retirement Institute and The American College of Financial Services, extending a retirement by just five years from 30 to 35 years increases the risk of depleting savings by a whopping 41%, based on historical market returns.

Lack of Longevity Awareness Can Cause Undersaving

Predicting your life expectancy is exactly that: a prediction. While nobody can say with certainty how long they will live and how long they will be retired, the survey highlights how having poor longevity literacy—an understanding of how long individuals tend to live upon reaching retirement age—can make planning for the future challenging.

Those who underestimate how much time they will spend retired will also likely undersave for retirement expenses, according to the study.

“The findings in this report underscore a critical issue—many Americans are approaching retirement planning with limited knowledge of how long they are likely to live,” Annamaria Lusardi, a Stanford University economist and the academic director of the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center, said.

The study was based on the responses from more than 3,800 Americans with differing socioeconomic, racial, and age profiles.