What do you think retirement / old age will look like for people under 40?

[halloweenismyfuntime]

I'm in my 30s and there seems to be a popular opinion around that the state pension may not exist in the future when people my age retire, and that's why workplace pensions are pushed more these days.

But unless if you are on a good salary and have a generous employer, not everyone's work place pension is going to be particularly great. For example, my employer puts in the minimum required and I have an average salary, and my annual forecast if I continue in this same way is about £2.5k a year. Many others on lower salaries or working part time will be in a simile boat.

Do people think things like the winter fuel payment, bus passes etc will still exist in 30,40+ years time? Or maybe things will be means tested, rather than universal benefits like now?

Plus surely there will be a lot of people reaching retirement age without owning a house, with house prices being what they are.

And yes, I know I could start paying more into pensions etc now, but I'm prioritising my mortgage and bills at the moment, as I'm sure most people are.

Doing OU study part time around busy family life as it's flexible. Finding a job with flexibility around children with additional needs isn't easy. I don't have a support network local so care is juggled between DH and I. One income family for the time being due to current life circumstances.

Sorry you also have arthritis, it's not supposed to be like this for young people 😭

The problem is that most people just assume everyone works in occupations that are 9 til 5, with no night shift rotation, or no physically demanding aspects. Life isn't that easy, you can't just keep working in physically demanding jobs into your 70s, and re- skilling isn't easy either at those ages.

Would there even be enough 9-5 desk jobs for everyone who needs one to move into?

Especially with AI...

There will be suitable jobs, even if unskilled. This generation raised us that 'any job is a good job', so they can apply the same. Even if working part-time.

I read an article than we are extremely close (10 years) to everyone getting to a healthy old age. For all the talk of Dementia / Alzeimers - they are actually falling despite increases in diabetes. And with Wegovy & similar we might be able to support the elderly to keep mobile and healthier for longer.

There will be sod all state pension for anyone with any semblance of a work pension, no matter how shitty it is. Bollocks are 'we all in this together ', we're meant to keep paying taxes, ni and whatever they decide and be happy that we'll be working till 75 to keep doing this to pay for those who won't and haven't ever!

Exactly. Unlikely.

I feel the same as this. Utterly depressing.

I keep saying this but haven't done it yet, I plan to open a sipp each for my dc when I can afford the initial 100 each start up investment.
Then as soon as they earn I want them to put little bits in the to habit form mainly!

I wonder too if the UK government will bring in the Australian model, where the state pension is means-tested. It would fuck NI contributions though, as they are tied to SP entitlement so very hard, probably impossible to disengage.

Hopefully by then we'll have a universal basic income. Means tested pensions disincentivise people from saving, so I'm not sure it would ever be suddenly introduced.

I do feel for young people, between the burden of tuition fee debt and crazy house prices, saving to get ahead is like having concrete boots and a rising water level before they even start.

The demographic picture is very bleak. I think the future will be a small state pension which will be enough to provide minimum calories per head but nothing more.

So I think we will be like in China where there is no state pension and the person in the old age is purely the responsibility of the children.

I’m a 45 year old teacher and paid into a pension since I was 21, however I’m worried I won’t even get that! My pension contributions at raising for currently retired teachers, younger teachers would pay for mine … however there are fewer younger teachers coming into the profession or don’t stay long and the ones that enter opt out the scheme. Sometimes I think DH and I should opt out too and so something else with our money.

My children are 12 and 9. They have dual citizenship so we’ll encourage them to leave the UK to study and give them as much financial advice as possible.

69 maybe or at worse 70.

Things change. When I was young females all retired at 60 and men at 65. Then for women it jumped to 65 then 67 within a couple of years. Now it's up to 66/7.

@Martin83 China has a state pension, please check your cultural stereotypes. China faces the same demographic challenges as many western countries in terms of funding retirees in the face of a rapidly shrinking work base, its challenges are just more acute due in part to population growth reduction strategies pursued in 80s and 90s. The UK is far from unique in facing this funding challenge- so far most countries have tried to reduce value of retiree benefits by either delaying start of benefits (delaying retirement age) or by being a bit mean with adjustments for inflation and promoting personal responsibility for funding pensions privately. This will not be sufficient in the long run though.