Well, finally when we dump the Libs - the truth begins to come out and it is not pretty
''Politicians are all too aware that a metaphorical poverty freight train is coming ...''
What can one say besides, -------- to all those callers that Oz was rich - nup, you were wrong
While the average super balance at retirement stands at roughly $340,000 for men and $261,000 for women, Grattan Institute research shows it's grossly inflated by the fact some people have very large superannuation balances.
"75 per cent of retired renters have total assets, including any car and personal effects, of less than $125,000," Brendan Coates says.
It's a disturbing statistic: half of all people renting in retirement are living in poverty.
Then there's the growing cost of housing
This is where the alarm bells start ringing.
The age pension doesn't meet some international poverty standards.
In addition, rising property prices mean a growing cohort of low-income Australians will never own a home and, instead, rent in retirement.
To repeat myself, the age pension does not cater for the cost of renting.
A wave of renters heading for poverty
Let's finish where we began.
We know half of retired renters are now living in poverty.
The experts worry this number will increase substantially in coming years as housing becomes increasingly unaffordable, notwithstanding successive government policy action. Five things I wish I knew about super when I started working
There are benefits to paying timely attention to your super early in your working life to get the most from this publicly mandated form of financial self-discipline.
"We expect the number of retired renters to nearly double over the course of the next 30 years," Coates says.
