Question 1

Why do I need to know my ‘death day’?

Accepted Answer

It might sound morbid, but knowing how long you're going to live for is essential for working out your retirement plan.Most people know when they want to retire (50, 60, 65, or later). Your “death day” is simply the other end of that timeline.Once we know both dates, we can calculate how many years you’ll be retired ... and how much you’ll need to cover those years.

Question 2

Why do Kiwis underestimate how long they’ll live?

Accepted Answer

Men underestimate their lifespan by about 5 years, women by about 7. That’s because we often look at our parents’ age or use “life expectancy” figures from Google. But those are misleading. Life expectancy is an average age of death today. That number is pulled down by people who die young, and it doesn’t account for the fact we’re living longer. The older you are now, the higher your likely lifespan.

Question 3

How do I use this in my retirement plan?

Accepted Answer

The good (or bad) news is you’ll probably live longer than you think.That means more time on earth to spend with your family or travel the world.But it also means that you’ll spend more time in retirement.So, you may need a bigger retirement fund to live the lifestyle you want.Use this calculator to run your own numbers.Play around with changing your expected age of death. You can see how it impacts the money you’ll need to retire well.

How long will I live?