What worries NZ baby boomers

Concerns

Contrary to popular advice, New Zealand baby boomers do not intend to spend the next five to ten years worrying whether they will have enough money to get by.

While 80% aspire to be financially secure at a level that will fund their desired lifestyle, the focus of their energies over the next decade will be on maintaining their vitality. And New Zealand baby boomers overwhelmingly see health as their key to that vitality.

Health is the number one issue that worries New Zealand baby boomers
The number one issue for New Zealand baby boomers going forward is the preservation of their health and vitality. It is the single biggest issue that worries more than two thirds of New Zealand baby boomers. This finding supports earlier research by the EEO Trust (McGregor, 2006) that found half (49%) of retired respondents to its survey cited health as the most important factor that had caused their retirement. More than 91% of New Zealand baby boomers are likely to make health their priority over the next 5-10 years and almost 80% say they are concerned about trying to stay in shape. They universally (95%) agree that health is the driver to being able to do what they want and that in the future, older people will be much more active and engaged than older people in the past (94%). Baby boomers do not see any reason why they should have to feel less vital and energetic as they get older (89%).

Getting sick and frail, losing their mental sharpness, losing their ability to live independently and being short of energy and vitality are the things they worry about most.

Yet nearly 70% of them do not feel confident the New Zealand health and social welfare system will be able to support them as they age.

Apart from wanting to have enough money to get by on (61%), financial concerns do not rank highly for more than half of New Zealand baby boomers. This is with the exception of a high ranking for the concern, “external factors you can’t plan for eroding your savings” (65% of New Zealand baby boomers are concerned), which is a direct response to the effects of the 2009 financial crisis on finance company savings.

Concerns of New Zealand baby boomers
69% Getting sick and frail
67% Not being mentally sharp
66% Being able to live independently
65% External factors you can't plan for eroding your savings
64% Being short of energy and vitality
61% Having enough money to get by on
60% No longer being able to live life to the fullest
59% Being in charge of your affairs
51% Having sufficient health-care insurance coverage
47% Being treated as an old person
43% Being stuck doing the same old things every day
42% Being bored with your life
40% Not being current on what's going on
40% Not being taken seriously
40% Living somewhere that is not vibrant and exciting
39% Having enough to do and keep busy
38% Not being able to live in your current home
37% Being relegated to the sidelines
29% Not having the opportunity to be in charge of something
28% Finding a community of other people to be with
28% Being taken advantage of in some scam
20% Not being involved in social causes

Source: New Zealand Boomer Dreams Study 2009, n = 754
“How concerned are you about each of the following?” 7 point scale.


American baby boomers also worry about their health, but their concerns are tempered by their greater worry (at 70%, the greatest worry reported in either list) of how they are going to pay for it. New Zealand baby boomers’ concerns remain cushioned by the social welfare system, despite their lack of confidence in it.