AS GEN X NEARS RETIREMENT, CHALLENGES LIE AHEAD

Tapping home equity and working longer are key strategies that can help overcome a savings shortfall.

- BY DIANE HARRIS

What is unique about the challenges that Generation X faces when it comes to retirement compared with other generations?

The 64 million people in this generation, who range in age from 45 to 60, entered the workplace when traditional pensions were sliding out of view and 401(k)s were stepping onto the scene. In the early years, nobody really understood what a 401(k) was, and there was little assistance from your employer. And Gen X didn't have the benefit of automated-participation features that are helping younger workers save earlier for retirement.

They have also lived through a lot of economic upheaval that has dealt a blow to their retirement savings: the dotcom bust, the Great Recession, then the pandemic. And many of them have a ton of credit card debt, more than any other generation.

That's a pretty bleak picture. Is there anything that's working in their financial favor?