Investment plans should factor in life expectancy
Although you might think life expectancy is the one number you’d try hard to get right, most of us tend to underestimate how long we’ll live, routinely making investment decisions that are at odds with our future needs.
According to recent Statistics Canada data, the median life expectancy at birth for Canadian men is approximately 76 years; for women it's closer to 82.
Don't forget, though, that by the time you're comfortably retired, many of your peers will have already died, thus increasing your personal odds of living longer.
Eliminating the 15 per cent who die prematurely and the 15 per cent destined to live the longest can give you a reasonable sense of the future. According to actuarial calculations, within the 70 per cent left, men will die at ages ranging from 74 to 94, while 70 per cent of women will die somewhere between ages 77 and 96.
If that's still too broad a range for you, a growing number of web sites can help paint a more personal picture with easy-to-use life-expectancy calculators.
In other words, if you, or perhaps a parent, has already hit 65, you'll probably make it to you mid-80s and could easily live well into your 90s.
Spend five minutes figuring out how many years you have left — statistically speaking — by doing the math using AARP's longevity calculator. You may be surprised.
For a more detailed estimate of what the future might hold, have a look at this life calculator.
Were you surprised? Given your family history, does your estimate seem reasonably accurate?
By Gordon Powers, MSN Money
Posted by: SP | Aug 17, 2021 9:46:28 AM
Might not be a bad idea to factor in health as well. Good health can mitigate a lot and poor health can cost a fortune.
Posted by: Arachie Campbell | Aug 17, 2021 9:05:37 PM
None of the questions ask about longlivity of parents and other relations. I would think that age family members died would be of ultmost importance in calcualting ones own life expectancy.