A survey done by the Employee Benefits Research Institute stated that one-third of retirees found expenses in retirement higher than expected pre-retirement, including one-tenth of retirees.
This survey found the difference considering the most concerning medical and dental expenses: 25% higher, and another 13% called expenses much higher than their expectations. 24% of retirees said their housing expenses are much higher than expected, and 21 percent said travel, entertainment, and leisure activities.
Only 10-12% said their expenses in the categories mentioned above were lower than their expectations. There were some special categories of a survey that considered two more types of spending: long-term care expenses and financially supporting family members. In both cases, about 50% of the respondents said those expenses were not accountable. The researchers also conducted sampling to study these reports before and after the pandemic hit. They found that people reporting higher and much higher than expected—for the former category increased from 18% to 31% and 14% to 21% in the latter category.
The survey report also mentioned, “When they asked retirees about their overall lifestyle in retirement now, compared to their expectations before they retired, only 28% said it was much better or somewhat better than what they expected.”
