OSC survey reveals gaps in Canadians’ retirement experiences and preparedness

TORONTO, Jan. 10, 2024 /CNW/ – The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) today released Profiles of Retirement, an investor research survey that looked at the financial lives of Canadians 50 years of age and older.

This survey sheds light on the attitudes and expectations of retirees and pre-retirees — the fastest growing demographic in Ontario — and builds on the OSC’s vision of a stronger and more secure financial future for all Ontario seniors. The survey showed that while the majority of Canadians 50+ are investing and earning an income, a significant proportion are in a financially vulnerable position.

“Identifying and addressing the needs of older investors is a priority for the OSC,” said Tyler Fleming, Director of the Investor Office at the OSC. “The retirement survey provides important insights into the expectations and experiences of retirees and pre-retirees. The research results will help inform the OSC’s regulatory and operational work in support of seniors.”   

Key findings include that while most retired Canadians said they were in a financially strong position, 15% reported their financial situation as poor and almost one third reported their monthly expenses in retirement are higher than they expected. The survey also found working Canadians over 50 may not retire as comfortably as those who are already retired.

Both retirees and pre-retirees indicated they may not be prepared for financial emergencies and many respondents shared they are not preparing financially for the possibility of physical or cognitive decline.

About half of pre-retirees had an event occur leading up to retirement that impacted their ability to save and almost half of retirees had an unexpected event occur that significantly impacted their finances — the most common event being a long-term disability. Not surprisingly, retirees with lower incomes were also more likely to have unexpectedly high expenses and lacked the resources to save and plan for their retirement.

The survey results identified the following as the top three areas of concern:

Power of attorney for property – 60% of retirees and 43% of pre-retirees have not appointed one.Trusted contact person – 71% of retirees and 83% of pre-retirees have not appointed one.Unexpected costs – 61% of pre-retirees currently saving for retirement had not considered unexpected costs related to health or long-term care in their planning.

The survey of 1,500 Canadians 50 years of age or older included 878 Canadians currently retired and 622 Canadians not yet retired. Fieldwork was conducted from March 1 to April 18, 2023.

For more retirement resources, investors can visit GetSmarterAboutMoney.ca and sign-up for the OSC’s popular e-newsletter, Investor News. And OSC in the Community hosts events across Ontario to talk with seniors and others about investor protection.

The mandate of the OSC is to provide protection to investors from unfair, improper or fraudulent practices, to foster fair, efficient and competitive capital markets and confidence in the capital markets, to foster capital formation, and to contribute to the stability of the financial system and the reduction of systemic risk. Investors are urged to check the registration of any persons or company offering an investment opportunity and to review the OSC investor materials available at http://www.osc.ca.

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SOURCE Ontario Securities Commission