About That Inheritance… Don’t Count on It
Not too long ago, it was assumed that Social Security would pay for most people’s retirement needs. Now, we know better and most employees, regardless of their age, are aware that they need to save additional funds for their retirement. In fact, many younger employees believe that Social Security won’t even be around once they retire.
Unfortunately, these same employees also believe they will receive a significant inheritance from a parent or grandparent. To make matters worse, some actually believe that their children will help take care of them in their old age. This could be a major mistake on both counts, especially about receiving an inheritance.
An article on the website Employee Benefit News titled, “Unrealistic expectations muddy employee retirement planning,” says that millennials anticipate their inheritance will cover any gaps in their retirement funding. A study in that article found that not only don’t many retirees have any money to pass along to their children, but half of them don’t even have a will. As Judge Smails said in the movie Caddyshack, “You’ll get nothing, and like it!”
The key takeaway in all this is that when it comes to retirement, you must rely on yourself. Don’t rely on the government or Social Security. Don’t expect that you’ll inherit money. And definitely, don’t expect to win the lottery. Retirement has a funny way of sneaking up on you and, unlike buying Christmas presents, you can’t wait until the last day to bail yourself out of the situation. Plan ahead and be diligent about saving for retirement. If you do happen to receive an inheritance, then consider it a bonus rather than a requirement to retire comfortably.
Companies can help their employees by providing retirement planning tools and even a financial advisor. If you’re self-employed, or your employer doesn’t provide these benefits, then seek out these tools and advisors yourself. There will always be things to worry about in life, so make sure that retirement isn’t one of them.
Originally featured in UBA’s January 2017 “HR Elements”.
