The 14 retirement life stages most over-60s will experience

There has never been a more significant turning point in life than 60 is today. 

Previous generations saw none of the optimism and opportunity that today’s over-60s can enjoy. But with the long life comes a few more retirement life stages of significance. You can now expect to perhaps transition to retirement (rather than simply retire), spend significant time caring for a parent or become a parent or grandparent who perhaps lends money to adult kids or grandchildren.

Longer life, and changes to society, also mean you may  divorce, discover grey nomadding, take a big retirement trip, focus on getting healthy, experience more ailments, take the time to plan carefully for the end of life, and so many more life stages that may not have been open to your own parents or grandparents.  

We’ve identified 14 fairly common life stages or key activities that the average over-60 will navigate as they approach and experience retirement (or non-retirement).  And now you can take the quiz to understand how many you’ve experienced and compare yourself to others like you.  

Curious about the results of other over-60s?  The quiz has been running for a little over two weeks on Starts at 60, allowing us to understand how the different stages of life are affecting people. Thousands of people have responded already. Some of the results and changed circumstances of life of those over-60 right now might surprise you and make you feel a little less alone as you traverse your own retirement.

Marriage:  Just 60 per cent of over-60s surveyed are married, with 14 per cent divorced, 10 per cent widowed and 8 per cent declaring themselves as single.

Retirement status: 32 per cent of people are currently planning for retirement, 25 per cent are recently retired, 35 per cent have been retired for some time, while 6 per cent are not thinking about retirement yet.

Retirement planning: 49 per cent have put together a retirement plan that helps them understand their budget, finances and income strategies.

Downsizing: 30 per cent have downsized already and 20 per cent are thinking about downsizing.

Pensioners: 18 per cent have qualified for a full Age Pension and 14 per cent have qualified for a part-Age Pension.

Big Retirement Holiday: 40 per cent have been on a big retirement holiday already.

Getting Healthy: 65 per cent have made a specific effort to get healthy in their retirement.

Disruptive Health Issues: 43 per cent have seen disruptive or chronic health issues arise.

Grandparents: 73 per cent have become a grandparent already.

Grey Nomadding: 17 per cent have been grey nomadding already.

Caring: 18 per cent care for an ageing relative right now.

There’s a whole lot of other life stages in our quiz too. Take the quiz here to see how many you have experienced and we’ll send you the results and sign you up for our Starts at 60 Reinventing Retirement program, tailored to the life stages that are relevant to you.   

It will also allow us to better understand the content, learnings and information we should bring you on Starts at 60 over coming months. Thanks for being a part of it.