Boomers Want To Save Better But Don't Always Know How: Study

Boomers are attracted to investments with certain guaranteed features but don't always recognize that they can get these features by buying annuities, the survey found.

For instance, when asked their opinion on certain product benefits, 71% liked the idea of a retirement vehicle that provides a steady stream of income once they retire, and 69% liked the idea of a vehicle that guarantees the principal.

Yet the study found 86% of leading-edge boomers don't own annuities. Of these, 70% say they have not thought about buying an annuity, mostly because they don't know enough about the product.

That they don't recognize annuities provide precisely the investment advantages they seek shows that boomers, like many others, are mystified by them, says Long. It's up to the industry and advisors to educate boomers on different types of annuities that fill the bill for their retirement savings needs, he says.

The study also found differences among the sexes in their views of annuities.

Among those that already own an annuity, both men and women liked the guarantees that annuities offer. When asked to rate the value of annuity characteristics, however, women rated both "steady stream of income" and "guarantees the principal" higher than men. On the other hand, men rated "death benefit" and "estate for heirs" slightly higher than women.

Guardian found that women who own annuities tend to find most annuity characteristics more appealing than men, particularly the living benefits.

"While men don't rate any of the characteristics significantly higher than women, they do place more relative importance on the death benefits," says Long.