Americans think they'll need to save $1.8 million for a comfortable retirement, according to a new survey. But for many of them, that’s just a shot-in-the-dark guess.
Many have no idea how much they should save or how to invest whatever money they sock away. They’re baffled by many other essential facets of retirement planning, the survey released this week from Charles Schwab showed.
That’s a real problem because what Americans save is supposed to become a major source of income in retirement, and, if they're clueless on the basics, many may under-save and face a shortfall in their old age.
"The workers we surveyed may be 5, 10, 20, or even 30 or more years away from retirement, but the gap between now and the future can make it difficult for savers to nail down specifics about what they imagine their lives will look like in retirement," Marci Stewart, director, communication consulting and participant education for Schwab Workplace Financial Services, told Yahoo Finance.
Kerry Hannon | Yahoo Finance