Trends in retirement security by race/ethnicity

Abstract

The brief's key findings are: (1) The earnings and wealth gaps between whites and minorities are enormous. The question is how these disparities translate to retirement preparedness. (2) In 2016, the share of whites at risk in retirement was 48 percent vs. 54 percent for blacks and 61 percent for Hispanics, smaller than the earnings/wealth disparities. (3) The retirement gap is smaller simply because minorities have a lower pre-retirement standard of living to maintain. (4) From 2007-2016, retirement risk for all three groups increased, but the gap between whites and blacks narrowed while Hispanics fell further behind because: (a) a sharp decline in earnings among low-income blacks was buffered by Social Security; and (b) Hispanics were hit much harder than either whites or blacks by the bursting of the housing bubble.