Some people have seen the Covid-19 epidemic as a boon and others as a disaster.

These effects now appear in one other place: the anticipated retirement date.

A Northwestern Mutual survey found that 35% of Americans have decided to alter their retirement age because of the pandemic.

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24% of those surveyed said that they expect to retire earlier than before the pandemic. On the other hand, 11% stated that they would like to retire earlier.

With 39% of the respondents, those who delayed their retirement dates most often said that they intended to wait three to five more years. With 35% of the respondents, however, a longer timeframe than 10 years came in second.

Most people who moved earlier in retirement plans also intended to delay it for three to five additional years.

According to Northwestern Mutual’s survey, there has been a shift in the expected retirement age.

The average age people plan to retire at is now 62.6, up from 63.4 in last year.

Gen Z and millennials have different expectations. Generation Z and millennials expect to retire at 59.5 and 59.4, respectively.

Amongst the Gen X, which is expected to retire at 64.3 years old, baby boomers are expecting to reach 68.3.

You may not want to retire sooner or later, but it is difficult to predict your retirement.

Christian Mitchell, Northwestern Mutual executive vice president/chief customer officer, stated that it’s sometimes more difficult to actually retire earlier than expected.

He said that issues with workers’ health or the need for care of a family member could cause them to have to leave earlier than they planned.

Mitchell stated that the fact that younger workers are more likely to retire earlier indicates that attitudes about retirement and careers are shifting. This means that having multiple careers, as well as taking sabbaticals, will become more popular for these cohorts. It also translates into higher retirement expectations.

The survey revealed that people have an average of $98,800 saved for retirement, up from $87,000.500 last year.

Yet that’s still a long way from how much respondents said they anticipate they will need to comfortably retire — $1.047 million, up from $950,800 last year.

Mitchell stated that this shortfall is a sign of how important it is to work with a financial adviser to think about all possible futures, and prepare for them.

Mitchell stated, “You need somebody who’s an expert in this area to guide you through the big decisions.”