Non-retired Canadians estimate they’ll need an average of $787,000 to retire comfortably, but almost half (46%) don’t have a financial plan to achieve that goal, according to a poll conducted on behalf of Toronto-based Royal Bank of Canada (RBC).
More than half (54%) of respondents had a financial plan in 2018, but for 32%, that plan was “in my head.”
Canadians’ estimates of the nest eggs they’ll need for retirement are significant — British Columbians estimate they’ll need $1.07 million — but only 16% are “very confident” they’ll be able to save and invest what they project they’ll need, according to the poll. Forty-five per cent are “somewhat confident” and 39% have “no confidence.”
Additionally, 66% of Canadians say they’re motivated to save because they want to be debt-free. To achieve these goals, 74% say they would spend less on non-essentials, 59% say they would eat out less, 45% say they would postpone major purchases, and 34% say they would cut back on travel.
“Debt is a huge motivator for most Canadians — they’re telling us they don’t want to live with debt now and they don’t want to retire with debt in future,” Richa Hingorani, senior director, digital strategy, RBC, says in a statement. “Identifying actions to start taking today is an important first step — and those actions can become much more effective if people put a plan in place to help them reach their goal.”
To this end, RBC says, it has launched an online tool, MyAdvisor, which connects clients with financial planners. Clients and planners “can jointly view and adjust an online dashboard that displays an interactive picture of the client’s finances,” according to RBC.