Baby boomers have increased financial support for their adult offspring who struggle to find job opportunities or simply don’t manage their money well, according to a new survey conducted by Ameriprise Financial. The only problem is that older workers are threatening their chances of retirement in the process.
Baby Boomers Continue Supporting Grown Children
The Amerprise Financial survey revealed that a large number of baby boomers are sacrificing their own financial well-being to ensure their adult children are secure. In fact, over half of baby boomers have allowed their offspring to move back home with them rent-free, despite the fact that their own financial security has plummeted over the last few years.
Baby boomers are individuals who were born during the post-World War II era between the years of 1946 and about 1965. The oldest of the boomers have already reached retirement age while many others are rapidly approaching it.
This is a time when most workers in this age group begin thinking about how soon they will leave their jobs and begin comfortable lives without financial worry. According to the study, however, many have postponed retirement planning because they are not only caring for their aging parents, but also their struggling children.
Parents Delay Retirement Planning Due to Guilt
The Ameriprise survey offered several reasons that baby boomer parents may be feeling so financially squeezed as they undergo retirement planning. One major reason is that they feel pressured to help family members, while managing their own bills and attempting to save money.
The report also found that some of this pressure is coming from an enormous sense of guilt.
For example, parents feel guilty that their children are not well equipped to manage money. They believe they missed their opportunity to teach their children financial literacy when they were younger and now, as adults, parents feel it’s too late or even too intrusive to start.
Experts recommend that parents don’t shy away from money discussions with their children, even if they’re already grown adults. In fact, they urge parents to talk to offspring of any age about budgeting and even retirement planning.
Rather than continue to support adult children financially on the basis of guilt, parents are encouraged to provide offspring with financial education that might help them rely less on their parent’s income in the coming years.
