A Paid-Off House and $500,000 Puts You Ahead of 80% of Retirees

Picture a street with a hundred houses, one retired household in each. The new Federal Reserve survey tells us how many of those houses are renting, how many still have a mortgage, how many are paid off, and how many have the paid-off house and $500,000 or more saved besides. Only 20 of the 100 have both. Meet Carol, Walt, Frank and Ray, one neighbor for each kind of house. Their numbers are the typical numbers for everybody living like them. See which house sounds like yours. CHAPTERS 0:00 One street, a hundred retirees 1:35 Who lives on this street 2:15 1. Carol's house: renting 3:48 2. Walt's house: still paying 5:13 3. Frank's house: paid off 7:04 Eighty of the hundred 7:37 4. Ray's house: paid off + $500K 9:00 Back up the block 9:28 Which house is yours? Which house is yours: Carol's, Walt's, Frank's or Ray's? Put the name in the comments. If you've moved from one house to another, tell us that too. THE NUMBERS Federal Reserve Board, 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances (public data, released October 2026). Retired households here means the head of the household is 65 or older and not working: about 29.4 million households. About 4,400 families took part in the survey. "Savings" means financial assets (bank accounts, retirement accounts, investments), not the house. Figures are weighted medians in 2025 dollars, our own calculation from the public data. - Renting (18.0%): typical rent $920 a month. 57% of retired renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent; about 3 in 10 spend half or more. Typical savings about $2,000. - Still paying a mortgage or home equity loan (27.6%): typical payment $1,200 a month, typical balance $100,000. Income about $79,000 a year, home about $413,000, savings about $86,100. - Paid off, less than $500,000 saved (34.8%): savings about $29,600, home about $210,000, income about $43,100, net worth about $340,200. - Paid off and $500,000 or more saved (19.6%): savings about $1.62 million, income about $134,400, spending about $5,750 a month (not counting housing payments), home about $550,000. Carol, Walt, Frank and Ray aren't real people. Each one stands for a group, and their numbers are that group's typical (median) numbers. The pictures are illustrations. This video is general information, not financial advice. #retirement #retirementsavings #retiredlife