(Photo: AARP)
Maryann O’Connor juggles two jobs and works up to 11 hours a day, which is different from what she expected to do at the age of 66. Maryan is just one of the Americans with no savings despite her nearing retirement.
“I’d like to be retired, playing the piano again, and enjoying life,” O’Connor said.
She sold her home and bought a smaller one with two other women because she had insufficient savings or 401(k) to cover an emergency.
“It’s been a matter of life and death,” she said, referring to her current financial situation.
According to the US, millions of Americans with no savings approaching retirement age still need to be financially prepared. 50% of women and 47% of men aged 55 to 66 have no retirement savings.
O’Connor, a single mother who adopted and raised three children, said she knew she’d be in that group.
“I guess I have a live-for-now philosophy,” O’Connor explained.
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Experts say it’s still possible for her and others to make a plan. According to the AARP, this includes continuing to work, lowering your cost of living, saving whenever possible, and deferring social security benefits until age 70 to receive the largest monthly check possible. You should also avoid risky investments that you believe will compensate for lost time.
“The higher the promised returns, the more real research you want to do before you put your money into something like that,” said David John, senior policy adviser for the AARP Public Policy Institute.
According to the AARP, nearly 57 million Americans with no savings work for a company that does not provide a retirement plan.
“I wish I had started sooner,” O’Connor admitted. “However, they should begin planning as soon as possible.”
O’Connor, on the other hand, is still working. She started a company that organizes trips for groups of women, which allows her to see the world for herself while also working.
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