Sandwich gen short $560K for retirement

Many Canadians in the sandwich generation (those aged 45 to 64) are more than $500,000 short of their retirement savings goals, says a new BMO Nesbitt Burns study.

The study is the second in an annual series that’s examining the retirement readiness of a specific generation. Last year’s study examined Baby Boomers (those born between 1945 and 1964) and found, on average, they’re more than $400,000 short of their ideal retirement savings goals.

Read: Pre-retirement clients may need reality check

According to this year’s study, more than half (55%) of the sandwich generation are currently caring for their children at the same time as they’re caring for their aging relatives. As a result, 39% are worried they won’t meet their future financial goals.

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“Those in the sandwich generation [say] they’re getting squeezed [between] paying down their mortgages, saving for their children’s educations [and] saving for retirement,” among other responsibilities, says Sylvain Brisebois, regional manager at BMO Nesbitt Burns.

Read: Boomers worry about outliving savings

One of the main problems, adds the study, is about 40% of investors in the sandwich generation lack financial plans.

Regional breakdown of results

Region	Average amount needed for ideal retirement lifestyle	Average amount currently saved for retirement	Average gap between amount saved & amount needed for retirement	% caring for children, aging relative or both	% who say stress is impacting long-term saving
National	$818,000	$258,000	($560,000)	55	76
Atlantic	$839,000	$166,000	($673,000)	64	83
Quebec	$447,000	$180,000	($267,000)	47	64
Ontario	$876,000	$227,000	($649,000)	61	82
Prairies	$581,000	$247,000	($334,000)	51	77
Alberta	$970,000	$491,000	($479,000)	53	72
B.C.	$1,131,000	$317,000	($814,000)	56	77