Concerns Over Social Security’s Future Continue to Grow - Bankrate.com
Planning for retirement can be complex, with many competing issues compounding the process. One of those issues—the program’s uncertain financial picture—became apparent in the results of a new Bankrate survey summarized in a post on their website today by Lane Gillespie (click here to read the post). The survey results point to a problem for future Social Security beneficiaries, over half of whom report they expect to be dependent on these benefits in retirement and nearly three-quarters of whom “… are concerned that promised Social Security benefits won’t be paid to them upon retirement age.”
The problem is summarized in a quote from Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst: “Social Security provides a vital backstop for current and prospective retirees, yet the financial outlook for this popular program is cloudy.” This quote reflects that Social Security’s Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) trust fund is projected to be fully depleted eight years from now, triggering an across-the-board benefit cut estimated at 21%. While this projection, of course, causes concern for future retirees, the Bankrate survey also notes that “77% of current retirees are reliant on Social Security to pay necessary expenses.”
The Lane Gillespie article provides considerable detail on the survey’s findings, including population demographics and contrasts between the viewpoints of current and future retirees.