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August 05, 2010 at 08:00 PM
Over two-thirds of boomers feel that financial security is the American dream, according to a recent study by MetLife, up from 60% in 2006. Just 34%, though, say they have “achieved the dream” this year, down from 2008 and 2009 when 40% of boomers said they had.
Not only are fewer boomers financially stable, but their confidence that they ever will be is slipping, too, down 6 percentage points from 2009 to 53%. Eighty percent of boomers say their families face more risk now they did in the past.
While 67 percent of boomers equated financial security with the American dream, 46 percent said a comfortable retirement was an important part. One-third said they equated the American dream with home ownership, and just 17 percent said to them, the dream meant having a successful career. Family (54%) and marriage (31%) are also a large part of the dream for boomers.
The study asked boomers if they feel the “bar is constantly rising in terms of the basic necessities of life” or if the basic necessities in their lives “will always remain constant.” In April 2010, 58 percent of boomers agreed that the bar is constantly rising, up from the January 2009 study when boomers were evenly split between struggling to keep up and having everything they need.
