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Data & Research December 16, 2009
Workers Turn to Family First for Financial Advice
New research from the Sun Life Financial Unretirement Index revealed that more working Americans seek financial advice from family members and friends than from financial advisers, the media, and online outlets.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
Family was cited by 43% of Americans as their source for financial advice, while 39% said they turn to friends, according to a press release. Financial advisers ranked third with 36% of respondents naming them as a resource.
Only one-third of Americans cited online or television news as a place to get financial information, and newspapers ranked lower at 28%. The least popular choices are advertisements (11%), blogs and online forums (10%), and TV personalities (10%). The answers for these categories were consistent across all age groups, Sun Life said.
However, the Unretirement Index found dramatic differences between where younger workers and those closer to traditional retirement age turn for advice. Sixty four percent of workers ages 18 to 29 look to family members for advice, while less than 20% seek the help of a financial adviser. Conversely, workers in their 60s are more likely to seek guidance from a financial adviser (45%) than a family member (33%).
The Unretirement Index, launched by Sun Life in October 2008 (see “Sun Life Tracks ‘Unretirement’”), gauges how economic, financial, and societal forces affect working Americans, and forecasts their future retirement decisions that will impact individuals, the government, employers and the larger economy.
