For most, it's homeownership and benefits, not savings, that fund retirement
Q. Can I be said to be a millionaire? I have cash-type assets of about $180,000. I have a 401(k) worth about $82,000. My paid-off home is worth about $175,000. I will also receive a defined-benefit pension. I could receive it about five years from now, when I will be 53. My annual statement gives the currently projected "lifetime annuity value" as about $1.515 million. I believe it is based on a $4,520 monthly benefit over my estimated lifetime (53 to 81 years of age). A rough calculation of present value says this is worth about $570,000. That, plus the above assets, gives a total right at $1 million.
D. J., Dallas
A. It would be safer to say you are a "virtual millionaire." The value of your monthly pension is the sum of money, invested today, that would produce the guaranteed monthly income for the rest of your life. You can check that by visiting immediateannuities.com, entering your age, state of residence, and expected monthly income. It will show you how much that income would cost as an investment in a single premium immediate annuity. The value will depend on your marital status, whether there is a guarantee period, and the level of survivor benefits to your spouse if you are married.
It is likely that the combination of your pension and Social Security benefits makes you a millionaire entirely in virtual assets.
Of course, if you counted millionaires this way, they'd be a dime a dozen.
Few realize it, but it costs a great deal to buy a single premium inflation-adjusted life annuity. That's what Social Security provides. Generally, they cost about 50 percent more than a conventional fixed annuity.
An example, using quotes for a Vanguard inflation-adjusted life annuity. Suppose you are an average worker retiring with a Social Security benefit of about $1,100 a month. Since your spouse may receive that benefit as a widow upon your death, it is likely that one or both of you will receive that benefit for about 25 years. The value of that income stream is a virtual $264,289.
In addition, your spouse also receives benefits. These benefits would be valued based on your individual life expectancy. The total is the virtual value of Social Security for a couple. Add the value of Medicare benefits, and many Americans are virtual millionaires on the basis of their Social Security and Medicare benefits alone.
Why am I telling you all this?
Simple. The financial services industry routinely emphasizes our savings - our financial assets. Putting primary attention to these assets is appropriate for the top 5 or 10 percent of all households. But for the other 90 percent, the big levers are Social Security, a pension - if you have one - and home equity. For most Americans, financial assets are a distant fourth.
This reality means that true financial planning involves more attention to benefits and homeownership. And less attention to saving and financial assets.
Scott Burns is a syndicated columnist. He can be reached at scott@scottburns.com.
