As we know, the demographics in the US will have a large affect on investments due to shifting preferences as baby boomers retire. I just caught these random statistics from Newsweek…

  • There are 78 million baby boomers (around 26% of the total population)
  • Approximately 9 million boomers will retire in the next 10 years
  • Baby boomers make up 38% of US households
  • 78% of baby boomers own a home
  • Median Net Worth of baby boomer household: $149,500
  • Average value of a baby boomer house: $181,700
  • 11% of baby boomers plan to buy real estate within the next year

So, some quick math will tell you that the average baby boomer either hasn’t paid off their mortgage yet — the value of the house is greater than the net worth, or they have some other debt that makes the math work.

Likewise, while 9 million people retiring in the next 10 years is a large number, it is only a fraction of the total baby boomers. I’m not sure if the 9 million would-be-retirees would be the total number, or if a non-working spouse would be included (which raises the possible number to a theoretical 18 million).

The total net worth of all the baby boomers would be $1.35 trillion (assuming the median is not too far from the average). I would hope that those who are retiring within the next decade make up a larger portion of those above the median…