Retired Canadians, On Average, Live On 62% of Their Old Working Wage

Toronto, ON - Retired Canadians, on average, live on 62% of the salary which they earned in the period just prior to their retirement, according to an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Sun Life Financial. Atlantic Canadians, on average, live on 67% of their old working wage, which is higher than the percentage of the old working wages retirees live on in the other regions: Manitoba and Saskatchewan (65%); Quebec (64%); British Columbia (63%); Ontario (60%) and Alberta (59%).

Being aware of one's future financial situation when they're retired has led some to seek professional advice from financial advisors, and for most the service appears to be beneficial. Six in ten (62%) retirees that work with an advisor say they have saved enough money for retirement compared to only four in ten (38%) that say the same but do not have a financial advisor.

With income being reduced significantly in retirement, it is logical that when asked what advice retirees would give working Canadians, the number-one response is to start saving/investing early (88%). Also among the top three pieces of advice are taking care of your health (88%) and living within your means (85%). In the chart below are more words of wisdom that retirees have shared with working Canadians.

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Life in Retirement

In their retirement, retired Canadians spend on average $2,611 a month on expenses such as food ($396), housing ($731), health care ($110), income tax ($498), leisure/travel ($333), entertainment ($124), transportation ($170) and savings ($249). In contrast, working Canadians spend on average $3,431 on expenses such as food ($464), housing ($971), health care ($86), income tax ($928), leisure/travel ($213), entertainment ($118), transportation ($220) and savings ($431). In short, they're spending 76% of the amount they used to spend on a monthly basis, on average while pulling in 62% of their wages. Despite some of the challenges retirement brings to Canadians, nine in ten (88%) retirees feel positive about their life in retirement with only one in ten (12%) feeling negative about it. Interestingly enough, Ontarians appear the least likely to feel positive about their life in retirement (84%) compared to Albertans (89%), Atlantic Canadians (89%), British Columbians (90%), residents of Manitoba and Saskatchewan (91%) and finally Quebecers (92%).

Retirement has not come without any surprises for many retired Canadians. One in three (32%) are surprised by the ease of living on a reduced budget while two in ten (22%) are surprised about how difficult it is to do so. One in ten (10%) are surprised to be spending more than they expected while another one in ten (10%) are surprised to be spending less than expected. One in ten (10%) are also surprised about how quickly their money is running out followed by less than one in ten (8%) that are surprised in the cost of healthcare.

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between December 15 and December 23, 2015, on behalf of Sun Life Financial. For this survey, a sample of 4,010 Canadians from Ipsos' online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/- 1.8 percentage points in total and +/- 2.5 percentage points amongst retirees , 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Sean Simpson
Vice President
Ipsos Public Affairs
416.324.2002
[email protected]

About Ipsos in Canada

Ipsos is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos' marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

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About Ipsos

Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. Ipsos ranks third in the global research industry.

With offices in 86 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across six research specializations: advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, public affairs research, and survey management.

Ipsos researchers assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media and they measure public opinion around the globe.

Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999 and generated global revenues of e1,669.5 ($2,218.4 million) in 2014.

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