"Average Retirement Age in Korea is 55, Minimum Monthly Living Expenses for Old Age are 2.51 Million Won"

'2023 KB Golden Life Report' Released
'Adequate Living Expenses' Are 3.69 Million KRW per Month
More Than Half Have Not Started Preparing for Retirement

The average retirement age for Koreans is 55, and it was found that the minimum monthly living expense required for old age for Korean households is 2.51 million KRW, while the appropriate living expense is 3.69 million KRW per month.

On the 26th, KB Financial Group Management Research Institute released the '2023 KB Golden Life Report,' revealing the status of old-age preparation for Korean households. This report was based on a survey conducted from January 3 to January 27, targeting 3,000 men and women aged 20 to 79 living in major cities nationwide, including Seoul.

Korean households cited health (35.7%) and economic power (30.1%) as the most important factors for a happy old age. Households before retirement (35.2%) considered 'health' less important than households after retirement (40.7%), and single-person households (31.3%) placed more importance on 'economic power' than couple households (29.0%).

Anxiety about old age varied depending on the presence of a pension. Both 'active households' with a main job and 'semi-retired households' where one or both spouses are seeking a main job expected that households with pensions would have a better old age life than those without pensions.

The desired retirement age for households not yet retired was on average 65, but the actual retirement age (average 55) was more than 10 years earlier. More than half (52.5%) of respondents said they had 'not yet started' economic preparation for old age. For those who had started economic preparation, the average starting age was 45, which is later than the 44 years reported in the 2018 survey.

The 'minimum living expense,' which covers basic food, clothing, and shelter for old age, was estimated at 2.51 million KRW per household per month, while the 'appropriate living expense,' which includes basic needs plus travel, leisure activities, and allowances for grandchildren, was estimated at 3.69 million KRW per month. However, considering the current household income, expenditure, and savings capacity, the amount that can be prepared for old age living expenses was 2.12 million KRW per month, which is 57.6% of the appropriate living expense and below the minimum living expense.

Methods used to prepare for old age living expenses included 'National Pension (86.8%)', 'Private Pension (58.7%)', 'Interest and financial product principal income (55.9%)', 'Retirement Pension (54.1%)', and 'Private school, military, and government pensions (49.1%)'.

Looking at the old age preparation status of couple households, when measuring the overall preparation level on a scale from 1 (not prepared at all) to 7 (very well prepared), 'couple households with children' scored 3.89, higher than the 3.48 scored by 'couple households without children.'

'Couple households without children' owned an average of 3.1 pensions, more than the 2.3 pensions owned by 'couple households with children,' and 26.8% of them expressed an intention to use 'housing pensions' in the future, higher than the 18.5% of 'couple households with children.'

Regarding the choice of residence in old age, pre-retirement households cited 'well-equipped medical facilities (65.7%)' as the main infrastructure for old age residence. Post-retirement households preferred to continue living in their pre-retirement residence (42.6%).

Regarding 'Aging In Place,' where elderly people wish to continue living in the community where they have lived so far, 66.2% of all respondents agreed, and the biggest concern about spending old age at home was 'caregiving by spouse or family,' cited by 32.5% of respondents.

There were many positive responses regarding living in a 'Silver Town.' 60.7% of respondents said they would live there, with women (68.9%) showing a higher willingness than men (54.5%).

Dr. Hwang Won-kyung of KB Financial Group Management Research Institute explained, "Due to increased life expectancy, changes in perceptions of support obligations, and diversification of household types, customized old age preparation is necessary. Especially, as the demand for 'Aging In Place,' where elderly people wish to continue living in their current communities, is increasing, institutional changes that allow the construction or remodeling of houses incorporating universal design concepts should be actively pursued to support this."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.