A new Transamerica retirement survey reports that none of the baby boomer, Generation X or millennial generations feel secure about their retirement prospects. The survey puts the majority of the blame on the financial crisis, which wiped out the 401(k)s of many boomers and made both Generation X and millennials skittish about working with financial advisors, Money.com is reporting. Among all age groups, the survey found that six in 10 say they have not fully recovered from the financial crisis, and nearly 8 in 10 are concerned Social Security will not be there for them. The survey also found that two-thirds of baby boomers believe that even if they work until 65, they will not be able to put away enough money to retire and nearly half expect a lower standard of living in retirement. Eighty-three percent of Generation X believes boomers have it easy compared to their retirement prospects, and just 18 percent of millennials feel very confident about their retirement.
California Voting On State-Run Retirement Plan
California lawmakers are expected to vote this week on creating a state-run retirement plan for residents not covered by an employer-sponsored one. The proposed plan would cover 7.5 million residents, two-thirds of whom are employed at businesses with less than 100 workers. The plan would be run by the California Secure Choice Retirement Savings Investment Board and is expected to invest in treasuries and other low-risk debt security. All employers with at least five employees who do not offer a retirement plan will be required to participate, and workers will be enrolled automatically (contributing 3 percent unless they change it), with the opportunity to opt out. Contributions limits would be the same for IRAs. The option is becoming more popular, as more than half of states have introduced similar bills since 2012.
Kerkorian Will Contest Settles
In an example of the drama that can arise from a (in this case truly bizarre) blended family, The Daily News reports that Kira Kerkorian, the “daughter” of deceased casino billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, recently settled her will contest and will receive $8.5 million in trust from Kirk's estate. Though Kira’s mother, Lisa Bonder, to whom Kerkorian was only married for 28 days, admitted during their 1999 custody battle that she faked the paternity test that determined Kira was Kirk’s biological daughter, the billionaire still raised Kira as his own child, supposedly providing upwards of $100,000 a month in child support. The value of the trust reportedly remained the same as originally laid out in the will, but the trustees and some terms were altered during the settlement negotiations.
