Retirement

The recession has increased joblessness among older Americans. These graphs and tables report unemployment rates and how they have varied by age, sex, race, and education since 2007.

For many of the 36 million men and women age 55-64, the decade or so preceding retirement -- the period before Medicare and Social Security generally become available -- is less the glide path toward tranquility and more a roiling journey through economic and workforce instability.

The sharp decline in the stock market in 2008 placed the retirement security of many Americans at risk. Although the market has rebounded this year after bottoming out in March 2009, as of mid-October 2009 the S&P 500 Index remained 30 percent below its peak level two years earlier. This brief simulates the impact of the 2008 stock market crash on future retirement savings under alternative scenarios. The results show that by delaying retirement one additional year, many mid- and late-career workers could increase their income at age 67 enough to offset some or all of their stock market losses.

The retirement savings of American households took a big hit when the stock market crashed in 2008. Recently, however, a good portion of these losses has been reversed. This fact sheet follows trends in retirement account balances since the beginning of 2005.

This presentation to the National Tax Association at a plenary session covers many of the aspect of our current fiscal dilemma: the squeeze on important budget functions, the long-term potential deficits, the rise and fall of domestic discretionary spending, and the impact of the ability of voters to choose the type of government they want.