At age 87, Rebecca Reed would like to spend her days socializing with friends and, in her words, “eating candy and watching TV.” Unfortunately, she doesn’t have the money for it – and she’s not sure she ever will.
According to a recent Business Insider interview, Reed has to continue working as a church secretary and editorial assistant just to stay afloat. Although he plans to retire by age 90, he has doubts.
Looking back, Reed can see how she got into this situation: she let her late husband handle their joint finances and she wasn’t informed of what was really going on.
The two had separate checking accounts, and after his death in 2011, she learned he had virtually no savings. She didn’t have his insurance either because of a complicated situation with her husband’s ex-wife and their children.
On top of all that, she was horrified to discover there was still a mortgage on their home – and the payments were $1,000 a month.
Reed was forced to file for bankruptcy and rely on the support of her family to get by.
While this helped for a while, life continued to throw her way, including two car accidents (one resulting in a broken shoulder) and a termite infestation that required her to replace her roof (1).
She wasn’t able to save much earlier in life because her daughter and her daughter’s husband both died in the early 2000s when they were in their 40s. They left Reed and her husband — who should have been nearing retirement — to raise their 11- and 13-year-old grandchildren. Both are now thriving adults (2).
Today, Reed is on firmer financial footing. He paid off his house and has income from his two jobs. She receives $3,000 a month from Social Security. However, she is still not in a position to retire.
He also can’t afford the $6,000 a year it would cost to insure his New Orleans home. She chooses to risk being without insurance, which means a hurricane could wipe out almost everything she’s worked for (1).
Reed says it can be a challenge to be the only one still working among her siblings and friends. They have to plan events around her work schedule.
Sometimes she thinks about quitting both jobs and tightening her budget to make ends meet, but then another thought holds her back.
“To do the things I want to do, I need more income,” she says (2).
Reed is far from the only older adult in America who has had to put retirement plans on hold.
In fact, US Census data shows that the proportion of workers over 55 has increased from 10% in 1994 to 24% in 2022 – the strongest growth of any demographic (3).
A slew of polls show that Americans are feeling less and less confident about retiring in their 60s. For example, a 2025 report from the Alliance for Lifetime Income and Ipsos Group found that 30% of non-retirees between the ages of 61 and 65 are considering delaying retirement due to current economic and political uncertainty (4). Data from financial planning firm TIAA also found that nearly two-thirds of Americans say retiring between the ages of 65 and 70 is not realistic (5).
In 2026, insurance company Allianz Life found that 27% of Americans feel less confident about reaching their retirement goals than they did last year. Gen Xers, who are in their late 40s to early 60s and see retirement on the horizon, feel particularly bleak about the prospect: 38% say they feel worse than last year (6).
Read more: The average net worth of Americans is a surprising $620,654. But it means almost nothing. Here’s the number that matters (and how to make it skyrocket)
While there’s no denying that macroeconomic pressures are getting in the way of retirement dreams, some Americans may have an unrealistic idea of what they need to retire.
A Northwestern Mutual survey shows that most Americans believe they need at least $1.26 million in their retirement savings (7).
However, most Americans saving for retirement are far from that goal. According to data from the financial services company Empower, the average retirement balance for the company’s American clients in their 60s is $544,439 (8). Internal data from Fidelity also shows that the average 401(k) balance for 61-79 year olds is just under $250,000 (9).
So, in reality, very few Americans have seven figures saved for retirement — but that doesn’t mean they have to struggle until they’re finally down. Rather than shooting for an arbitrary “magic number,” each person’s retirement target will be unique and dependent on their lifestyle.
There were many things out of Rebecca Reed’s control, but two simple strategies could have helped prevent her current financial headaches.
The first is setting aside savings earlier, even if it was just a little, which would have allowed her and her then-husband to take advantage of the capitalization over time.
Ideally, that would have given him a better cushion to deal with emergencies. Maybe he would have eaten those candies by now if he had stepped away a little longer for a rainy day.
An equally significant issue was Reed’s ignorance of her family’s finances before her husband’s death. Reed didn’t know her financial obligations until they fell on her shoulders. And when that happened, she didn’t have the resources to deal with the sudden deluge of expenses.
Communication about money is more important than ever as more couples choose to keep their finances separate. According to census data, the proportion of married couples without joint accounts increased from 15% in 1996 to 23% in 2023 (10).
While pooling your money may not be the solution, couples should consider scheduling time to check in on their finances to prevent unpleasant surprises.
An easy way to create transparency and start building for retirement is to download a money management app. These software tools connect to your bank and card accounts to provide a clear visual display of where your money is going. With this data, it’s easy to see where everything currently sits and how much you can afford to set aside for retirement and other savings priorities.
It’s also important to set a realistic retirement savings goal, rather than guessing how much you need. A popular formula for a rough estimate is the rule of 25: Multiply your expected annual expenses during retirement by 25.
If you’re still not sure how much you’ll need, consider contacting a registered financial professional for more personalized guidance on your case.
The more you know about your finances, the better you’ll be on track.
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Business Insider (1)(2); US Census (3, 10); Alliance for Lifetime Income (4); TIAA (5) Allianz Life (6); Northwestern Mutual (7); Power of attorney (8); Loyalty (9)
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. Offered without warranty of any kind.
