Description: This report provides background on U.S. trends in the timing of retirement, the claiming of benefits behavior, including discussion of labor force participation trends, the timing of commencement of Social Security, phased retirement alternatives, work as part of retirement, and the effects of retirement plan participation on these decisions. This study evaluates several of the more common retirement timing and claiming strategies using a retirement simulation model that incorporates investment, inflation, health and long-term care risks. Results of these simulations provide insight into the comparative risk exposures and costs of various retirement timing and claiming strategies for typical retiree households.

Description: As the retirement system has shifted to a greater focus on defined contribution plans and personal responsibility, post-reitrement risk management has grown in importance. This report covers the study of the process of retirement.

Description: With the decline in traditional defined benefit plans, cutbacks in Social Security already legislated, and further ones possibly needed to maintain solvency, retirees increasingly must rely on their own ability to manage their retirement income. Relatively few retirees purchase annuities, leaving them with investment and distribution decisions concerning their accumulated savings. Increasing life expectancy and improved health at older ages raise the issue of whether people should consider postponing retirement as a way of assuring adequate resources during retirement. During retirement, they face complex issues concerning how to manage various risks. Increasingly, people planning for retirement have access to financial planning software, much of it available over the internet for free. This study, sponsored by the Society of Actuaries and the Actuarial Foundation, assesses the extent to which the retirement planning programs analyzed help users understand post-retirement risks.

Description: Summary/Project at a Glance of Spending Decisions in Long Term Retirees Study

Description: Fact sheet about surveys of individuals 85+ years old and children of individuals 85+ years old looking at post-retirement experiences.

Description: 2015 Risks and Process of Retirement Survey – Report of Findings

Description: This report highlights findings from the 2011 Retirement Risks Survey related to working in retirement, with additional sources for commentary.

Description: This is the Questionnaire used for the research study, 'Will Retirement Assets Last a Lifetime?'. That study, sponsored by the Society of Actuaries Committee on Post Retirement Needs and Risks, LIMRA, and the International Foundation for Retirement Education, surveyed approximately 1,500 retirees with $100,000 or more of investable financial assets. The survey questions explored how retirees make decisions about investing their assets and purchasing financial products

Description: This report presents the results of a 2003 telephone study among Americans ages 45 to 80. The purpose of the study was to evaluate Americans’ awareness of potential financial risks, how this awareness impacts the management of their finances with respect to retirement and how Americans are managing the process of leaving the workforce.

Description: The SOA is pleased to make available a report highlighting findings related to housing from the biennial survey, Risks and Process of Retirement.