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Byline: PAUL KATZEFF
Americans are increasingly gloomy about retirement prospects, according to a new poll of workers with retirement accounts like 401(k)s.
Workers said they'll be forced to retire on average about five years later than they expected in 1995. They've rolled back their target date three years just since 2002, they told John Hancock Financial Services.
This uptick in pessimism didn't stem just from the recession of 2001-2002.
Instead, it reflected how little the workers have done to get ready for retirement, says Wayne Gates, a fixed-income expert for Hancock, who oversaw the poll. Even in the long bull market prior to the downturn, they did little planning.
"They essentially left retirement security to luck," he said.
Lack of planning includes the most basic steps. For example, only slightly more than 50% of workers have calculated how much money they need in their retirement nest eggs.