A new official household wealth survey has shed light on the retirement plans of Britons.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), overall "household wealth", including property, pensions and personal assets, hit £8 trillion between 2006 and 2008.
When asked whether or not they expected to enjoy a "comfortable" retirement, only 34 per cent of those planning to rely on the state pensions and other state benefits said yes.
By contrast, 69 per cent of those who would mainly use savings and investments to fund their post-work years, expect a comfortable retirement.
ONS also found that pension and property assets account for roughly 40 per cent each of total household wealth and that the median wealth per household came to just over £200,000.
Retirees planning to rely on the state, or those who have not built up significant personal pensions, savings and investments, could be suited to taking out an equity release plan.
In this way, they would use property assets to fund their retirement.
Recent figures from the Association of British Insurers showed that around four in ten people are putting little or nothing into retirement savings.
Posted by Claire Ford
