A study of financial capability found that older Americans were significantly less anxious about personal finances than younger people. However, about one-third of non-retired people 55 and older had no retirement account.
A comparison of the percentages regarding financial anxiety and retirement accounts suggests that having sufficient resources to contribute to a retirement account is an important aspect of feeling less financial stress for older people. However, many younger people feel stress regardless of whether they have retirement savings. This is especially true of those ages 35 to 54 who may have large mortgages, children in college, and other financial stressors.