A significant proportion of over-50s would advise their younger selves to spend less on weddings, more on experiences, and put more time towards planning later life, a survey has found.
The two key themes many seemed to agree on involve planning or beginning to plan at a younger age for their eventual retirement, which can make all the difference over a long period of time if funds are regularly set aside in specific places.
And more specifically, the two areas where around half of respondents said they wished they’d look at themselves were investing more towards retirement, and focusing on clearing debt before retiring. While the latter was geared towards both credit cards and longer loans, the investing responses focused on different ways to pay more in earlier to get better returns from pensions.
When asked about what they would do differently, looking back, 16 per cent of people in this age group would have created a more comprehensive retirement plan at a younger age.
A quarter (25 per cent) would have taken their pension more seriously, and one in five (22 per cent) would have invested more into their pension overall, if given another chance, according to the research for Aviva.
More than a fifth (22 per cent) wish they had saved more for unexpected expenses while 18 per cent would have budgeted better for retirement.
When asked what they thought their younger selves should focus on, more than half (54 per cent) of over-50s recommended clearing debts as soon as possible.
A significant proportion of those surveyed said they had carried debts relating to credit cards (16 per cent) or mortgages (7 per cent) into retirement. A third (34 per cent) thought maximising contributions into a workplace pension should be a key focus and nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) said they would advise against relying too much on credit cards or loans.
Two-fifths (41 per cent) would advise against spending excessively on weddings – with women (50 per cent) more likely than men (33 per cent) to suggest cutting wedding costs, according to the survey of more than 1,000 over-50s by Censuswide across the UK in September 2024.
More than a third (35 per cent) of over-50s said they would tell their younger selves to prioritise lifetime experiences over expensive belongings.
Alistair McQueen, head of savings and retirement at Aviva, said: “With so many financial decisions to make in your 20s and 30s, and retirement feeling far off, it can be tough to know where to prioritise spending, particularly if you are on a tight budget.
“Hearing what the over-50s would advise their younger selves to do can give some helpful hints based on their greater financial experience. Most emphasise the importance of planning and saving for the future as early as possible.”
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