Local retirees are discussing investment strategies and portfolio allocations more often with their financial adviser compared to their peers across the country.
More than one-third (37%) of affluent retirees in Orange County said they speak with their financial adviser more often since they retired. That compares to 23% nationally, according to a Merrill Lynch Wealth Management quarterly survey.
Calls Bring Confidence
Nearly 60% of local respondents said they gained confidence about meeting their long-term financial goals through discussions with wealth managers, compared to 67% nationally.
Eighty percent of affluent retirees recommended that anyone planning for retirement should start no later than their 30s. Almost half recommended beginning the planning process in your 20s.
Nineteen percent of local respondents said they did not retire at the age they had planned for in their 40s, compared to 27% nationally.
The top reasons for delaying retirement: the toll the recession took on their finances (36% locally, 34% nationally); deciding that they did not want to stop working (36% locally, 23% nationally); needing to provide more support to their adult age children than anticipated (32% locally, 23% nationally); and not realizing how much they needed to save for retirement (15% locally, 21% nationally).
More than a third of local respondents de-scribed themselves as conservative investors.
Locally, 64% of respondents cited avoiding losses from market turbulence as their reason for investing conservatively. Only 30% of local respondents indicated they recognized that a conservative investment approach could miss out on higher returns during strong market conditions, while 21% said they didn’t know the long-term effects of conservative investing.
Moving Target
Twenty-two percent of local respondents said they plan to relocate during retirement, compared to 21% nationally.
Some of the top reasons for moving are more favorable costs of living (48% locally, 35% nationally) and more favorable tax incentives (34% locally, 36% nationally).
Other reasons for relocating include pursuing a new lifestyle (52% locally, 25% nationally), being closer to family and friends (44% locally, 34% nationally), living somewhere they’ve dreamed of (32% locally, 34% nationally), and pursuing hobbies and interests (54% locally, 29% nationally).
Three hundred affluent OC residents were sampled for the phone survey conducted by Braun Research between Dec. 8 and Jan. 1 on behalf of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, a division of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
The national sample consisted of 1,000 affluent Americans.
