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Thousands in 50s fear becoming homeless – Age UK

Tahmina Mannan
Written By:
Posted:
30/07/2013
Updated:
30/07/2013

Nearly a quarter of people in their early 50s are worried they will be forced out of their homes for not keeping up with mortgage or rent payments.

Age UK polled 971 people aged 50 and over across the country to get a snapshot of financial confidence with this demographic, who would traditionally be expected to be at the peak of their earning power.

Instead the tracker poll showed only 38% of people aged 50 plus say the future looks good for them.

Age UK said the results paint a worrying picture of a generation of ‘tomorrow’s pensioners’ beset with financial worries, including potentially finding themselves homeless as they struggle with increasing prices and high rents.

The charity said concerns over job security or finding work were also key concerns for the age group.

Nearly half of all unemployed men and women aged between 50 and 64 (191,000 people) have been out of work for more than a year with reducing prospects of finding a job despite being expected to work longer before they receive a state pension.

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Research showed it is harder for someone aged 50 and over to get back into the work place than for any other age group. They are also more likely to be made redundant when compared with workers aged between 29 and 49.

Low interest rates and poor returns on annuities mean that earnings on any savings designed to fund retirement are also extremely low and putting further strain on savings pots.

Michelle Mitchell, Age UK Charity director general, said: “We know that times are tough financially, but when a significant number of people aged 50 and over say they are worried about losing their homes, it’s a clear sign that many are truly struggling to keep their heads above water.

“While all sorts of factors may be at play, we know that too many older people currently find themselves locked out of the job market just because of their age.

“With the state pension age rising to 67 by 2028, it’s more important than ever that the Government, employers and recruiters ensure that people looking for work are judged on their skills, expertise and what they can bring to a job, not just their birthdate, enabling them to continue to contribute to the economy and build up to a financially secure retirement.”

This comes as another report from Virgin Money and Partnership showed that future pensioners face serious disappointment in retirement as they are likely to have a savings shortfall of £66,000.

According to the study, many people are likely to be disappointed when they retire, as they would need on average to save an additional £66,549 into their pension fund order to provide the income that they expect in retirement.

The report asked 2,000 people what they hoped for (£17,278) and what they actually expected (£12,359) in terms of annual retirement income.

This research showed that despite expecting 29% less income than they would ideally like in retirement, the typical pension pot (£51,452) at annuitisation still fell short by £66,549 of being able to meet their more modest expected income levels.

This stems both from a misunderstanding of how much the state pension will provide and from a shortfall in saving into private and occupational pension schemes.

Given this shortfall in pension savings, the report advised that people entering retirement need to ensure they achieve the maximum return when purchasing an annuity.