A significant proportion of older Americans underestimate how long their retirement is going to last, according to a recent article in The Hill.

Most people know that the average American lives to between 75 and 80 years. Less well known is that life expectancy rises with age. At age 60, an American man can expect to reach 82; a woman, 85.

That knowledge is called longevity literacy, and many people don’t have it, article author Daniel De Visė reported.  In a 2022 survey by the insurer TIAA, one-quarter of Americans underestimated the life expectancy of a 60-year-old. Another 28% said they didn’t know it, according to the article, which links to a number of relevant articles and surveys on the topic. The TIAA institute was "shocked" to find that even among Boomers, the youngest of whom are nearing 60, more than two-fifths of survey respondents either guessed low on longevity or punted on the question.

More tellingly, more than two-fifths of Boomers have no retirement savings, and the median household retirement savings of those who do was $134,000, according to a 2019 analysis. "By most accounts, even that figure is not nearly enough, De Visė writes.

To read the article, which contains a detailed roundup of recent data on retirement, click here