Retirement Fear Index Hits Record 126.4 Amid Affordability Strain

David Conti's November Retirement Fear Index hit a record 126.4, or 26.4% above its baseline. Created through RetireMentors, the index tracks 10 major fears among U.S. retirees and preretirees by synthesizing institutional research, news, social attention and major events.

Outliving savings, inflation and taxes, family caregiving and market volatility all moved higher in parallel, Conti wrote. "Too many things are competing for the same household dollar," he said, arguing that some of the largest fears cannot be solved through individual behavior alone.

Conti, a New Hampshire-based financial writer and retirement coach, has written about retirement for more than 20 years and spent 17 years at Fidelity Investments. He also writes the free weekly newsletter Don’t Short Yourself, which offers tips on earning, saving and growing money.

Most households cannot replicate that preparation, Conti said, while covering mortgages, raising children, supporting aging parents and adult children and meeting rising everyday costs. He treats retirement fear as a household-economics policy problem rather than a private planning choice, and says the affordability challenges featured in recent midterm elections now extend to retirement.

What is squeezing retirement savings?

A recent Goldman Sachs retirement survey found that retirement-savings momentum fell from 55% to 39% year over year. Goldman also found that 70% of workers had deferred a major financial goal because of daily expenses, while 66% of preretirees across Gen Z, millennials and Gen X expected to delay retirement because of competing financial priorities.

Conti said saving for retirement now competes directly with household bills and daily spending. He followed the steps many financial planners advise, including saving, investing, learning how markets work and considering taxes, healthcare costs, Social Security, retirement income and how long money might need to last.

When does Social Security reach a funding crossroads?

Social Security is one of Conti's three biggest fears and carries one of the index's highest intensity readings. The 2026 Social Security Trustees Report says the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund can pay full scheduled benefits only through 2032.

The 2026 Social Security Trustees Report says incoming revenue would cover only part of promised benefits after 2032 if Congress did nothing. Conti noted that Congress last acted on this issue in 1990, placing the financing debate squarely in the 2028 presidential campaign.

Conti said solutions would require choices on taxes, benefits, the retirement age or the wages subject to Social Security taxes, or some combination. He expects candidates to refine their positions in New Hampshire and answer his Social Security questions. France, he said, shows what happens when pension reform becomes explosive after governments wait too long.

Can retirees afford healthcare?

Workers with family coverage through their jobs now pay an average of $7,471 a year toward health-insurance premiums, KFF reported in a note issued last week. That was 9%, or $621, more than last year, while the total family-plan cost, including employer contributions, reached $28,303, up 5%.

Conti called living longer a good thing but a financial challenge, as Medicare leaves retirees facing premiums, deductibles, prescription costs, dental bills, vision expenses and potentially enormous long-term-care costs. A retirement that once lasted 10 or 15 years can now last 25 or 30. That means more housing, food, insurance and healthcare costs and more time for inflation to erode purchasing power.

Conti linked that pressure to rising fears about outliving savings and called healthcare another squeeze on retirement income for many households. He also said longer lives increase the number of years households must finance.

Does retirement affordability cut across party lines?

Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, employer retirement and pension plans provide a meaningful safety net, Conti said, but they face pressure along with the households that depend on them. Conti put the number of Americans who are retired or within roughly a decade of retirement at roughly 100 million.

Those Americans include Democrats, Republicans and independents living in cities, suburbs and rural towns, Conti said. They do not all agree on taxes, healthcare or the size of government, but they share concerns about Social Security's future, healthcare affordability, savings longevity and their ability to support family members.

Conti wants the national debate to address taxes, benefits, incentives and spending rather than leave retirement risk with households alone. "Those are not partisan questions. They are household questions," he wrote. He said the United States has time to act, but not unlimited time, as Social Security moves into the 2028 presidential campaign.