Kiwis believe they need to save more for retirement

The vast majority of New Zealanders believe they need to be saving more for retirement, according to ASB’s latest KiwiSaver survey.

The bank’s Q3 2018 survey revealed that almost 60% of respondents believe KiwiSaver should be made a compulsory scheme, and 62% believe they need to be saving more for retirement. Only 21% were comfortable that they did not need to increase their savings, with 18% remaining unsure.

The survey also found a wide variance in how much each respondent thought they would need for each retirement year. The majority - 31% - identified a figure between $30,000 and $50,000, with 25% believing they would need more than $50,000. A further 20% believed their required amount would be below $30,000.

According to senior wealth economist Christ Tennent-Brown, the clearest takeaway from the survey is that most Kiwis believe they need to be saving more for their retirement.

“As people get older, a slightly higher proportion of people believe they are on track, but even then, the latest survey shows that only 30% of respondents over 60 think they don’t need to save more,” Tennent-Brown said. “That leaves 56% of respondents thinking they need do need to save more for retirement.”

“At times like now when share markets are volatile it’s especially important to seek help if investors are unsure what they should be doing,” he continued. “These days, that help can be anything from sitting down with an advisor through to using some of the latest online tools, such as ASB’s KiwiSaver Explorer, to check everything from the appropriateness of a particular fund, through to imagining what retirement might look like, and how to save for it.”

The survey also showed that 25% of KiwiSavers under 30 were planning to use their savings to buy a property, a clear indication that KiwiSaver continues to be of particular importance to the younger generation looking to enter home ownership.

The survey was based on 791 online interviews with New Zealanders aged 18 and over.