Thrivent has officially published results from its Financial Fitness Survey, which discovered that many Americans are currently dealing with widespread financial concerns, but at the same time, haven’t taken the necessary steps to address them.
Going by the available details, this particular survey found that more than half of Americans (53%) are very or somewhat worried about their ability to retire when they want. Having said so, just 28% of Americans say they are currently saving for retirement.
Mirroring that dynamic, 48% of Americans were deemed as concerned about their debt, but only 36% reported any plans to prioritize paying off their debt this year.
This inaction, on its part, is largely driven by a lack of knowledge, something which was worst among the youngest generation. Here, Gen Z (21%) were found as least confident in managing their finances, compared to Millennials (26%), Gen X (29%), and Baby Boomers (38%).
The findings in question would also go on to uncover several key opportunities. For instance, one of these opportunities relates to seeking financial advice. At the moment, an estimated 3 in every 10 (29%) of Americans don’t seek out financial advice from any source, whereas only 22% rely on a financial advisor for advice, eventually causing them to be less certain about their finances.
The next opportunity in line calls for greater reliance on industry experts. This is because younger Americans are more likely to entrust a familiar set of faces when it comes to taking decisions regarding their finances. In fact, almost 42% of Gen Z and 47% of Millennials get financial advice from friends and family, compared with 37% of Gen X and 27% of Baby Boomers who said the same.
Another way out of young America’s dwindling financial confidence includes sticking to a budget. For better understanding, the current landscape has only 32% of Gen Z, 36% of Millennials, and 36% of Gen X regularly creating and following a budget. In contrast, Baby Boomers were deemed as much more likely (44%) to live on a fixed pool of money.
Then, there is an opportunity to build your own investment strategy. More specifically, America has a clear investment strategy gap between men and women. You see, while more than a third (35%) of Americans report they don’t currently have an investment strategy, 43% of women particularly say they don’t have one compared to 27% of men.
“Good money management starts with confidence,” said Sarah Hamlen, Financial Advisor at Thrivent. “I believe seeking professional financial advice, developing and managing a budget, and taking actionable steps toward retirement planning are fundamental moves anyone can do to meaningfully improve their financial fitness.”
Among other things, Thrivent’s survey emphasized the importance of becoming financial literate over time. To do so, people can pick a new financial topic every month. The overarching idea is to help them become more aware regarding their investment objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon, as well as how they can apply those components when making decisions with their financial advisor.
Thrivent also advised people to start planning for their retirement at the earliest point possible. The company proposed working with a financial advisor to automate retirement contributions, take advantage of an employer-sponsored match, and find ways to unlock more savings through better planning.
Conducted by Morning Consult, the Financial Fitness Survey had a sample size of n=2200 adults 18+ (weighted to U.S. general population on key demographic aspects such as gender, age, etc.), with a total audience margin of error of +/-2%.
Founded in 1902, Thrivent’s rise up the ranks stems from helping people achieve financial clarity. The company’s solutions, at present, are concerned with offering advice, insurance, investments, banking, and generosity products. The company’s excellence in what it does can also he understood once you consider its Fortune 500 status, along with the fact that it has more than $179 billion in assets under management/advisement (as of 12/31/23). Thrivent’s stature is also relayed well by its haul of over 2.4 million clients.
