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The good news is that more Saskatchewan and Manitoba boomers have RSPs and are currently saving for retirement than their Canadian counterparts. The bad news is that they are still behind when it comes to planning for their retirement.

According to a survey of Canadians aged 45 – 60 conducted for BMO Financial Group by Ipsos Reid, 77 per cent of boomers from Saskatchewan and Manitoba have RSPs, in contrast to the national average of 69 per cent. When asked what they are currently saving for, 75 per cent of boomers from Saskatchewan and Manitoba said retirement compared to 66 per cent of their fellow boomers.

Yet, while these boomers are ahead with saving for retirement, more than half of them indicated that either they don't have a financial plan or that their plan is “in their head”. In addition, 45 per cent consider their RSP to be their financial plan.

“Boomers from Saskatchewan and Manitoba clearly have a leg up on their fellow boomers when it comes to saving for retirement. However, it's concerning that so many consider their RSP to be their financial plan. Contributing to an RSP is certainly a good step towards saving for retirement, but it's not enough,” said Howard Almdal, Regional Sales Manager, BMO Mutual Funds. “Like their Canadian counterparts, there is still a significant number of boomers in these provinces who are behind when it comes to planning for their future.”

In fact, boomers from Saskatchewan and Manitoba are more likely than other boomers to spend their time planning exercise (54% vs. 49%), diet (60% vs. 47%), home renovations (55% vs. 46%) and car maintenance (42% vs. 33%) than planning their retirement.

Yet, in previous BMO-Ipsos Reid research, 91 per cent of Canadian boomers agreed that having enough money for retirement requires a lot of planning and advice to reach your goals.

“While boomers acknowledge that planning is important, it appears that most are reluctant to plan for something that is perceived to be so far down the road, especially when they have many other priorities to deal with,” said Almdal.

“Retirement represents uncharted territory for boomers - so it's all the more important for them to start considering a variety of contingencies and lifestyle choices today. Whether they plan to continue working through their traditional retirement years, volunteer or hit the road and travel around the world, we need to help them conceptualize what they want their retirement to look like so that they can plan ahead to fund the lifestyle they want to enjoy in the future,” added Almdal.

Additional research findings –

Do you spend more time planning for these activities than planning for retirement?

What do you think would most appeal to you at age 62?

Full results available upon request.

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