Will Longevity Risk Affect You?

Whether anyone will live longer than expected is very difficult to predict for a single individual. If you come from a family with long life expectancies, you may live longer than average. Life expectancy averages are based on large groups. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the average life expectancy in the United States is now 77.9 years.

Also, life expectancy constantly changes as you grow older. For example, while a man who is age 65 today is expected to live to about age 81, an 81-year-old man today is expected to live to about age 88.

The chart below offers some statistics on longevity at different ages.

This figure shows that about 90 percent of 65-year-olds can be expected to live until age 70. About half of 65-year-old women (who tend to live longer than men of the same age) will reach age 85. Therefore, people age 65 who are planning for a retirement of fewer than 15 years could be putting themselves at risk.

In addition, there is about a 15% chance that you, your spouse, or both of you could live at least another 30 years.

The majority of us will experience some level of longevity risk in retirement.

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