The Fidelity Investments Retirement Transition Study¹

Although many recent retirees report living the lifestyle they had hoped in their first three years of retirement, a majority look back to the years leading into retirement and wish they had done more to prepare.

•		Two thirds (66%) say they are doing as well or better than they had hoped in retirement.
•		Over half (57%) wish they had done more planning for the transition.
•		One in five note they should have: • created a budget of anticipated retirement income and expenses • developed an asset allocation strategy for their savings in retirement • designed an income source withdrawal strategy • learned more about their defined contribution plan's payout options
•		Seventeen percent of recent retirees wish they had retired later.

Despite their misgivings, the study shows that many recent retirees have yet to take action on these critical planning steps.

•		Almost half (43%) report that they have not completed a budget of anticipated income and living expenses.
•		More than half (52%) have not finalized an asset allocation strategy for their retirement savings, or developed a plan for which retirement income sources to withdraw from first (51%).
•		Only one quarter of retirees (26%) have completed all of the key retirement planning components (e.g., a budget, asset allocation strategy, and plan for income source withdrawal).

Similarly, workers one year away from transitioning to retirement report a high level of confidence that they will be able to live the lifestyle they want in retirement, but many have yet to complete some critical planning steps.

•		The vast majority (81%) feel confident they will be able to live the lifestyle they want in retirement, with one out of five (19%) feeling very confident.
•		Two thirds (68%) have not completed a budget of anticipated retirement income and expenses.
•		Three out of four (74%) have not yet determined an asset allocation strategy for managing their income while in retirement.
•		Only one quarter (28%) believe they fully understand how much they can spend monthly during retirement without outliving their savings.
•		A majority (72%) have not decided which income sources to withdraw from first for their retirement and less that one quarter (23%) say they fully understand which retirement income sources to spend first to minimize taxes.
•		Only one in ten pre-retirees (12%) have completed all of the key retirement planning components (e.g., a budget, asset allocation strategy, and plan for income source withdrawal).
•		Four in ten (44%) have not decided the best age to begin receiving their social security benefits.

Both recent retirees and those approaching retirement admit not turning to their employer for general assistance and guidance in making the transition into retirement, however those that did found significant value in it.

•		Most recent retirees (77%) admit that they did not look to their employer for general assistance and guidance in making the transition into retirement.
•		Of retirees who did turn to their employer for assistance, the vast majority (92%) describe it as being valuable.
•		One third (32%) of retirees who turned to their employer for assistance say they "could not have made the transition without it."
•		Nearly two thirds (61%) of pre-retirees, have not yet turned to their employer for assistance and guidance to make the transition.

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Fidelity Retirement Income Advantage^SM is a service of Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, member NYSE, SIPC, 100 Summer Street, Boston, MA 02110

Institutional retirement products and services are offered by Fidelity Investments Institutional Services Company, Inc., 82 Devonshire Street, Boston, MA 02109

¹The Fidelity Investments Retirement Transition Study was conducted by Richard Day Research, Inc. in November and December 2004 among 749 pre-retirees within one year of retiring and 755 retirees within three years of having retired who work for or have retired from an employer with more than 5,000 employees and hold a DC or DB plan from that employer.