NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Michael Montgomery used to check the balance on his retirement account once a week and smile. But lately, not wanting to get upset and question if he could retire in a few years, there was only one solution.
鈥淚鈥檓 not looking,鈥� says the 66-year-old professor from Huntington Woods, Michigan.
As the White House simultaneously and dismisses fears of a downturn, retired and near-retired Americans are anxiously looking on, worried about outliving their savings or having to put off entries on their bucket lists.
Keeping logged off his account has made Montgomery鈥檚 days less worrisome. He and his wife adjusted their portfolio after Election Day, including moving more money into bonds. But he鈥檚 not sure what more he can do if the entire world economy can be affected by Washington鈥檚 decisions.
鈥淚 hope like hell I don鈥檛 lose all my retirement savings,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut where else could you put the money that these people could not disorder? They can鈥檛 get into your mattress but that鈥檚 about it.鈥�
Many experts warned U.S. stocks were overpriced and due for a correction even before President Donald Trump reclaimed the Oval Office. But a historic blanket of tariffs have injected new uncertainty into the market.
Though , the S&P 500 is down 10% from an all-time high reached in February. Losses in the Nasdaq and among small-cap stocks are steeper. Even and have been volatile. Many economists are warning of a possible recession.
It has 71-year-old Jeanne Oats Estridge feeling so 鈥減aranoid鈥� she called her financial planner with an idea.
鈥淗ow about we put it all in cash?鈥� Oats Estridge asked.
鈥淚 just don鈥檛 advise it,鈥� she heard back.
Oats Estridge, who lives in Dayton, Ohio, retired from a job in software engineering and now writes books, including her latest, on four octogenarian women kidnapped by sex-trafficking aliens. Her account is down more than $40,000 and she gets angry thinking about how some in Washington have reacted to the market volatility, including Trump鈥檚 recent market assessment that it was 鈥渁 great time to buy.鈥�
鈥淲here am I supposed to come up with the money to buy? My underwear drawer?鈥� Oats Estridge asks.
Earlier this month, the Cboe Volatility Index, considered , reached its highest level in five years. The index, known as VIX, has since retreated but is still in territory reflecting fearful investors. Another measure of market sentiment, the Cboe S&P 500 Left Tail Volatility Index, which such as the 2008 housing crash that spurred the Great Recession, likewise has backed off from highs but remains elevated.
Trump has in assessing the impact of tariffs on their investments. Asked about his own savings earlier this month, he chuckled and replied:
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, meantime, brushed off the possibility that some might need to delay retiring, saying people
That seeming nonchalance isn鈥檛 sitting well with some older investors.
Peter Rost, 72, retired from his software development job last year and planned to start tapping his retirement savings to supplement Social Security. But he doesn鈥檛 want to bake in his losses.
鈥淚鈥檓 looking to take $2,000 and meanwhile the account drops by $30,000,鈥� he says.
He鈥檚 been through serious downturns before, but those were different.
鈥淚 had the time to be patient and let it work its way back,鈥� says Rost, who lives in New Hartford, Connecticut, 鈥渂ut now I鈥檓 retired and I need money from that account.鈥�
At his age, he says, there鈥檚 one goal: 鈥淢ake sure I don鈥檛 run out of money before I die.鈥�
Americans鈥� retirement savings totaled about $44 trillion at the end of 2024, according to the Investment Company Institute. The composition of those savings has shifted increasingly toward stocks in the last couple decades as the 401(k) has become employers鈥� typical offering.
Among fund giant Vanguard鈥檚 nearly 5 million accounts, for example, the average investor puts three-quarters of their savings in stocks. Even older investors are still heavily steeped in equities: People 55 to 64 have 64% in stocks at Vanguard; those 65 and older have 49% in stocks.
With that exposure, financial advisers are getting an influx of calls amid the recent market uncertainty.
Tj Binkowski, who runs Narrow Road Financial Planning in Clarksville, Tennessee, says some clients find themselves obsessively checking their accounts and feel the emotional strain of worrying about their money. A downturn, he says, hits an older investor much differently.
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e retired, paper losses aren鈥檛 just on paper anymore,鈥� says Binkowski. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e locking them in every month that you take money out.鈥�
Paul Duesterhaus, a 68-year-old retiree from Quincy, Illinois, is passing up an IRA withdrawal this year to avoid selling at a low. Instead, the retired manager at an air compressor manufacturing company will put off buying a new car as planned and cut back on things like eating out.
Still, he can鈥檛 help but feel bigger impacts of a trade war are ahead.
鈥淚 think there鈥檚 going to be longer lasting effects that are going to affect every American,鈥� he says.
That angst is more common among older adults than younger people. An April poll by found just under half of U.S. adults ages 45 and older said their retirement savings are a 鈥渕ajor鈥� source of stress for them right now, compared to about one-third of younger people. Older Americans were also more likely to say they're stressed about the stock market.
For now, many older investors are taking the advice of many experts, to fine-tune investments if necessary but avoid dramatic moves. But it can be hard advice to swallow.
鈥淭he more things go up and down, the more nervous you get,鈥� says Steve Turner, a 74-year-old from Chesterfield, Missouri, who runs a small public relations business. He now finds himself anxious when he goes to log on to his retirement account, wondering, 鈥淕ee, do I want to press the button?鈥�
鈥淵ou worry that things may work themselves out in the long run, but you don鈥檛 have as long," says Turner. "You鈥檙e not 30, you鈥檙e not 40, you鈥檙e not 50, you鈥檙e not even 60.鈥�
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Matt Sedensky can be reached at [email protected] and
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Associated Press writer Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux in Washington contributed to this report.
Matt Sedensky, The Associated Press
