Couples not discussing key retirement planning details: BMO

More than half of Canadian couples have not discussed their desired retirement lifestyle, when or where to retire or the amount of money they’ll need

By: IE Staff
February 10, 2012 February 10, 2012
14:40

With Valentine’s Day just days away, BMO Financial Group has released a study which focuses on communication between couples on retirement planning.

According to the study, conducted by Leger Marketing, 69% of Canadian couples state they have had a discussion with their partner about retirement plans. However, when examined more closely, fewer than half have discussed the essentials, including:

What their ideal retirement lifestyle will look like (47%)
At what age they want to retire (46%)
Where they want to live (44%)
How much money they will need to support their ideal retirement lifestyle (42%)
Whether they will be selling their house or staying in the family home (36%)

Almost one-third of Canadian couples do not have detailed insight into how much their partner has saved for retirement, including how much they have in their RRSP.

“We hear that communication is essential in a relationship — but that should include talking about finances and plans for retirement too,” says Tina Di Vito, Head, BMO Retirement Institute. “The sooner couples have a detailed retirement ‘talk’, the easier it will be for them to develop and implement a financial plan that will help them realize their ideal retirement lifestyle.”

The survey also found that only 27% of Canadian couples take advantage of spousal RRSPs, with 26% not even knowing what they are.

The online survey was conducted by Leger Marketing from January 30 to February 2, with a sample of 926 Canadian adults who are not currently single. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of +/-3.2%, 19 times out of 20.