Americans in the demographic cohort known as “Generation X,” that is, those born roughly between 1961 and 1980, are showing greater signs of financial anxiety than the baby boomer generation. This is according to Bank of America’s 2020 Workplace Benefits Report and quoted by the NextAvenue retirement media website.
“[The survey] found that only 23% of GenXers feel a sense of progress saving for retirement; only 22% feel that they have made progress in growing their savings to pay for unexpected expenses and only 14% feel that they have made progress in paying current and future health care expenses, ”the article reports. “In contrast, the percentages were twice as high (or more) for the boomers and Silent Generation members surveyed.”
The finding presented by the survey was not surprising, but it attracted attention as “sharp, remarkable and remarkable,” according to Surya Kolluri, managing director of Bank of America.
Other recent surveys further portray the financial anxiety of Generation X. According to an Allianz Life survey, 42% of Generation X members feel stressed about their finances compared to just 23% of boomers. Additionally, the median household retirement savings for Generation X is reported to be $ 64,000 compared to $ 144,000 for boomers, according to the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. 27% of Gen Xers have saved less than $ 50,000 compared to 18% of boomers, according to the same source.
As RMD detailed above, older members of Generation X will be eligible for Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Loans (HECM) starting in 2023, but some will be eligible for proprietary reverse mortgages as early as this year, 2021. These Facts come with a few different realities when directly comparing Generation X to their baby boomer parents, particularly when it comes to ways the reverse mortgage industry can attract a new generation when the time is right.
Personalizing the customer journey is something the industry can do to attract Gen X members, according to Jean Noble, director of marketing for Reverse Mortgage Funding (RMF). It is also important to expand the technology options available to the industry.
“Gen X is tech savvy and comfortable with technology; We need to continue to expand our digital footprint and develop excellent educational content that can be used on social media platforms and content publishers, ”Noble said in October 2019.
Read the Article and NextAvenue.
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