Daily Money - How to Test-Drive Retirement

The uptick in Americans working past the age of retirement has been well documented. But with 46% of employees ages 50 and older expecting to work past age 70, a new trend is emerging at the other end of the spectrum. Older workers are beginning to test-drive retirement years before actually exiting the workforce.

According to a recent survey, 34% of workers ages 50 and older are now “phasing” into retirement, or planning to do so, by reducing their work hours or job responsibilities as they approach the end of their careers. The poll also found that those who begin phasing into retirement at age 59 expect to work nine more years. 

Phased retirement is particular to members of Gen X (those born between 1965 and 1981), the oldest of whom are now reaching the age at which they can access retirement savings without penalty. The results of the survey, conducted by insurance services provider Willis Towers Watson, suggest a generational shift in how Americans approach retirement — and hints at members of younger cohorts being better financially prepared for their second act.

An annual survey from Charles Schwab asked Americans how much money they think it takes to be wealthy. This year, the average answer was $2.5 million, up from $2.2 million in the last two iterations of the survey. 

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