Don't weep for boomers close to retirement

In a story about retirement prospects for baby boomers, Bloomberg Businessweek cites a study co-authored by Dartmouth’s Alan L. Gustman that concludes the picture isn’t as gloomy for most in this demographic group as some might think.

The study, led by Gustman, the Loren M. Berry Professor of Economics and research associate for the National Bureau of Economic Research, looked at how the recession had affected the wealth and retirement of those near retirement age, Bloomberg writes.

In fact, writes Bloomberg, the inflation-adjusted wealth of those ages 53 to 58 in 2006 is shown to have decreased by only 2.8 percent.

“We thought the early boomers would be an enormously vulnerable group,” Gustman tells Bloomberg. “So we looked back and the answer was: Not much happened.”

Read the full story, published 2/24/13 in Bloomberg Businessweek.