Pensioner income is now higher than working families

It seems that if you are beneath retirement age you are now worse off in modern Britain.

They say never get old, but that might not apply anymore, especially if you want a few more quid in your pocket.

Research by the Resolution Foundation found that pensioner incomes dwarf those of working-age, who are struggling to make ends meet.

Retired people are more likely to own their own home and have substantial pension pots.

Weak economic growth has, for working-age people, seen their standard of living decline in recent years.

The think tank’s figures mean that pensioner households are £20 a week better off than working households. Back in 2001 the elderly were £70 a week worse off.

This huge shift indicates that working-age people are struggling to cope and their chances of owning a home, or building up savings and/or a pension pot are declining. If working households take on debt to maintain their standard of living they might also face more financial struggles down the line, as they reach retirement. So when they reach the end of their working liveds they will not share the income benefits that the elderly are now currently receiving.

However, the report, doesn’t believe that pensioners are feeling the boost in their income, it states: “This strong growth is not the result of a boom time for all pensioners, with most finding that their personal situation changes little from year to year. ”

Adam Corlett, Economic Analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said: “The main driver of pensioner income growth has been the arrival of successive new waves of pensioners, who are more likely to work, own their home and have generous private pension wealth than any previous generation.

“Of course, not all pensioners can draw on these income sources, which is why the state pension will always be the main income for many pensioners.

“We can’t assume either that young people today will be able to draw upon the kind of wealth that recent pensioners have accumulated, given the recent fall in home ownership and decline in generous defined benefit schemes.”