401(k)/IRA Holdings in 2013: An Update from the SCF

The brief’s key findings are:

• The Federal Reserve’s 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances provides an opportunity to examine trends in retirement savings over the past few years.
• The good news is increased use of target date funds; the bad news is no improvement in participation rates, significant leakages, and high fees.
• Surprisingly, for working households nearing retirement, median combined 401(k)/IRA balances actually fell from $120,000 in 2010 to $111,000 in 2013.
• Younger households did see rising balances but retirement savings levels are clearly inadequate, and about half of all households have no 401(k) assets at all.