As many workers are facing a shift away from defined benefit plans in favor of defined contribution plans, they’re often having a bit of trouble adjusting their focus. Rather than looking at the most important aspect, the income they’ll have coming in once they retire, many are focusing instead on the performance of the investments in their portfolios or their total account balance.
In a recent survey by Cerulli, most respondents said they check their retirement account balances quarterly or even monthly. However 80 percent of them said their investment performance or account balance is the number one thing they consider. The exception was those in the 60-69 age bracket. However, even among this soon-to-retire group, less than 20{d044ab8acbff62f209a116f8142e303cb886f535b0fcf58cb82cde7cb327d3c9} said potential income was their main focus.
Instead of looking at their account balance as a long stream of monthly payments, they zero in on the total balance as if it were a typical brokerage account. And, while earning good annual returns and accumulating a large balance are both good, what’s more important is making sure the projected income will match the anticipated retirement expenses.
The Department of Labor is considering making potential monthly income a mandatory piece of information on account statements. Until then, it’s up to participants to change their mindset and start asking those important questions of their plan sponsors.
To learn more, click here to read what BenefitsPro had to say about this issue.