Have You Ever Had it So Good?
What was the happiest year of your life? Many readers will have more than fifty years of conscious albeit inaccurate memories to sort through.
But despite our inevitable bias and selective memories about the ‘good old days’ a more correct answer could be that right now, older Australians are now being told ‘we’ve never had it so good’ although the pal I shared this good news with at the greengrocers looked less than impressed.
Two debateable reports this week both point to the relative affluence and good fortune of older Australians subject to having their own home.
Two headlines stand out:
- Our Oldies Have Never Had it So Good
- Grattan Institute says the typical retiree has a higher standard of living than when they were working
You may disagree and while it’s NOT applicable for everyone and there is no such thing as the truly average person, in aggregate, it’s arguably true.
The first story in the Sydney Morning Herald quotes Professor John Piggott, of the University of NSW; “Our analysis shows that standards of living of older people have improved over the last decade . . . Households reaching retirement age today have incomes about 45 per cent higher than those reaching the same milestone 10 years ago.”
It may be a big claim and is based, says economic editor Ross Gittins, on the way the pension is indexed and the rise in property values.
But the data from the Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research is clear: The better off are now much better off and even the rate of poverty amongst those aged over 65 is only slightly higher than for 15 to 64 year-olds.
We are in some ways a favoured but fearful class of citizens.
The second story refers to the Grattan Institute report which claims the superannuation ‘lobby has falsely claimed too many Australian have insufficient savings to guarantee a comfortable retirement'.
The institute, which takes issue with they what they describe as unfair tax breaks around super and for older Australians, says in fact most workers, will get a retirement income worth 91% of their pre-retirement income.
Their report Money in Retirement: More than Enough adds most retirees own their own homes, are net savers, and more likely to afford annual holiday and less likely to suffer financial stress than younger others.
The glaring exception to this apparent abundance are those who don’t own their own home and have to rent on the private market.
I don’t know how you feel but just maybe you really have ‘never had it so good’ but until someone spelled it out you just didn’t realize it.
Are you better off now? Leave a comment below.
