A new study suggests nearly half of young Canadians want to retire early, but few have begun saving enough for it.
The Bank of Montreal report found that 41% of those surveyed — aged 18 to 34 — expect to stop working before they hit 60 years old.
About 57% plan on retiring by the time they're 69.
Tina Di Vito, head of the bank's Retirement Institute says these expectations are unrealistic considering 27% of respondents have not tucked away any money for retirement.
Among those who had begun saving, 52% had put their money into a Registered Retirement Savings Plan, while 36% used a Tax-Free Savings Account.
The study did not look at how much money was saved in those accounts.
"What we've noticed is that (young adults) are not doing a lot of things that are absolutely necessary for them ... to start preparing for their retirement years," Di Vito said.
Young people might not realize that the earlier they begin investing for the future, the less they'll need to save once they're nearing retirement, she added.
Others may not see retirement planning as a priority.
But the reality is members of Generation Y should be more worried about their retirement futures than their parents in the Baby Boomer generation, said Di Vito.
In the past, retirees only needed enough money to live for a few years after they stopped working. Now, as people continue to live into their 80, 90s and beyond, the young generation need to make sure they have enough money for these extra years, she said.
Employers who offer defined-contribution pension plans — which guarantee a certain level of retirement pay out — are also more rare nowadays, forcing people to rely more on their individual investments in retirement.
The vast majority of young people surveyed agreed that retirement planning was relevant (75%) and important (82%).
Still, only 23% have spoken with a financial planner about their futures.
The "Broadening the Approach to Preparing for Retirement" report used data from a survey of a representative sample of 1,000 Canadians aged 18 and older.
It was conducted online by Leger Marketing between February 8 to February 16.
The margin of error is plus or minus 3.1%, 19 times out of 20.
