Retirement was cut short for 30% of older Canadians in 2013 due to financial concerns, says a study by ING Direct.

Nearly half of those people (48%), it adds, were forced back to work to bolster their savings. And, in a related study, the bank finds 31% of retirees who return to the workforce often do so because their living costs are also rising.

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What’s more, the reality of retirement isn’t often what older Canadians imagined when they were young, says ING. Almost half (45%) concede the costs of living are higher than anticipated. As such, they wish they had saved more in their 20s and 30s (29%), adding they shouldn’t have spent mindlessly prior to retirement (11%).

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Advisors can help provide reality checks since, as the survey reveals, most retirees nowadays (40%) says they would have maxed out their annual contributions if they’d had a better understanding of how much they needed to retire.

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Another 16% wish they’d had a good financial role model.

The good news, says the study, is more than half of working retirees (58%) predict they’ll be able to leave work once more in five years, though 24% aren’t as hopeful.

A look at Millennials

Most Canadians aged 18 to 34 (64%) are contributing regularly to retirement savings, says a third ING study that centred on young investors.

The only problem is many (69%) aren’t maxing out their annual RRSP contributions, and more than half (61%) aren’t sure how much they need to save.

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Nonetheless, they’re motivated to put away funds due to habits handed down by parents (29%), because they know financial plans are effective (22%), or because they see a current retiree struggling (18%).

Most young Canadians polled say retirement will come after age 60: Almost a third (29%) think they’ll retire between ages 61 and 65, while 21% expect to kick back between ages 66 and 70.

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They plan to achieve this by avoiding debt (41%), sticking to a plan (37%) and by setting goals (20%), says the study.