An alarming number of Gen Xers plan to retire in their children’s rooms

Gen Xers are approaching retirement age and know their 401(k) won’t go the distance, an alarming report shows.

A survey shows that 55-year-old Americans typically have less than $50,000 saved for their retirement — much less than the $446,565 suggested at this point.

Nearly a quarter of them expect to run out of cash and plan to turn to their children for support.

More than a fifth said they were likely to use a “white scooter” in their children’s spare room or bedroom.

Prudential, a financial group, surveyed the oldest members of Generation X, or people born between 1965 and 1980.

They are now entering their pre-retirement years, giving them about a decade to bank more savings before bidding farewell to their workplaces for good.

Many are worried about the decline of Social Security, what’s left of America’s safety net.

Carolyn Feeney, executive director of Prudential’s US business, said many 55-year-old women had “particularly insecure” finances as they entered the “critical 10-year countdown to retirement”.

She urged Gen Xers to look at their 401(k) and rethink plans so they can “not only live longer, but live better.”

A rule of thumb for 55-year-olds is to save about eight times their annual salary in their retirement accounts.

Instead, the average savings is $47,950.

The researchers found that only one in five 55-year-olds had saved the recommended $447,000 or more.

Many say they’ve struggled to put money away throughout their careers thanks to the bursting of the dot-com bubble, the housing crisis, the global pandemic and soaring inflation.

Many of them, as a result of their longevity, are also involved in caring for their children and elderly parents at the same time.

Fully 67 percent said they expected to lose cash before they kicked the bucket.

This means they are looking for other options – and planning to turn to their loved ones when the pension pot is empty.

Fully 24 percent said they would turn to their children or other family members for support, and 21 percent said they would likely ask a relative to use a spare room or bedroom.

This may come as a shock to the relatives of these Gen Xers, as nearly half of the respondents admitted that they have not yet shared the topic with their children.

Dylan Tyson, a retirement planning expert, says it’s time for many to grow their retirement nest egg.

A 55-year-old starting with $50,000 in retirement savings can end up with a $500,000 retirement package within a decade, but it takes hard work and some good luck.

They should save about $2,000 a month and earn a 10 percent annual return on their investments.

Gen Xers are also taking to social media to complain about their meager 401(k) packages and share tips on how to bank as efficiently as possible this coming decade.

“Many Gen Xers worry that they won’t have enough money to see them through retirement,” says Jane Walton, a financial advisor at TikTok.

She urged them to make a concerted effort to build a larger nest egg and leave work “earlier than ever.”

Colorado-based nurse practitioner Dr. Kendra Fejedilam says she has given up on saving.

Gen. Zaire expects to step down before she reaches age 65, saying her retirement plan must go through.

Their fears were compounded by the unraveling of the US safety net.

Recent data shows that funds to help Social Security and Medicaid could dry up in less than a decade.

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Social Security relies on trust funds to provide monthly benefit checks to about 70 million Americans.

But an aging population raises the cost of the program because fewer people pay into it, spending more than they earn.

In what has been dubbed the “silver tsunami,” about 4.1 million Americans will turn 65 in 2024, and every year through 2027, according to a report by the Association for Lifetime Income.

The latest annual report from the Social Security Board of Trustees found that Social Security will only pay full benefits for the next 11 years.

Social Security is funded primarily through payroll taxes—taken from wages—which are then used to pay retirement and disability benefits.

If the trust funds that the Social Security Administration relies on are eliminated, beneficiaries will face a reduction in their monthly checks.

This can be significant for millions of disabled Americans, and those who rely on Social Security as their only income in retirement.

The fiscal vision of the Social Security system has long been a point of political contention.

Republicans have proposed raising the retirement age, while Democrats have proposed increasing the payroll tax cap as a possible solution.