Michael Wagner in GOBankingRates: Why Retirees Can’t Let Go of Their Stock Market Habits

A volatile stock market, persistent inflation and rising rates have caused many American retirees to feel an unwanted strain on their wealth and retirement. However, despite all this economic uncertainty, retirees surprisingly cannot let go of their stock market habits. Interestingly, despite stock ownership rates among the majority of significant demographic groups reverting to levels comparable to those observed during the 2008 financial crisis, nearly two-thirds of Americans aged 65 or older retain ownership of stocks, as revealed by a Gallup survey. To dive deeper into this phenomenon, GOBankingRates turned to Michael Wagner, co-founder and chief operating officer of Omnia Family Wealth, for insight.

“Maybe people want to work longer or have to work longer, but either way, I think they have a longer runway than generations past,” says Wagner. “I think the number one fear that people have in that stage of life is outliving their money. If markets are doing well, they might be reaching for returns so that they can reach whatever number they want to hit so that they can reach retirement.”

Despite this sentiment, Wagner tells the publication that he still does not recommend that his older clients partake in aggressive allocations.

“I am a little bearish on markets because people are doing things like putting so much of their retirement plans into stocks,” Wagner explains. “In my world, we’re here to keep people wealthy, and we’re probably at about 40% equity, which is low. For the older clients that we work with, we would typically be doing less in equities and doing more in private credit, where we are taking risks, but I think we’re better compensated for the risks that we’re taking.”

Click here to read the entire GOBankingRates article.