Study finds surprising attitudes among high-net-worth boomers

A recent AARP study finds that:

• The majority of boomer “elites” feel that they are always on top of their finances (91 percent vs. 80 percent of total boomers) and that they have prepared well for retirement (82 percent vs. 57 percent of total boomers).
• These affluent boomers are comfortable making their own financial decisions, with only one third say they “seldom make a financial move without an expert opinion.”
• The boomer elite are very loyal to financial related services, such as banks, brokerages and credit cards. When choosing a financial or brokerage firm, 54 percent of the boomer elite use one company all of the time.
• Boomer elites place a high level of importance on their homes, not just as a shelter, but as both an investment and as an extension of their own image. Fully 40 percent of boomer elites have a real estate investment other than their primary residence, as compared to 18 percent of the total boomer population.
• Print media are particularly effective with this group, as they are spending a lot of time with newspapers and magazines, an average of more than 30 minutes every day with each, and over 43 percent say they read the advertisements in magazines that they subscribe to.