It’s natural to want to support our parents in their later years, just as they supported us during our formative years. Genuine sentiment aside, doing so has proven to be a real challenge for many, especially those in their 40s. This group, often referred to as the “sandwich generation,” is caught between juggling the financial responsibilities of caring for their aging parents as well as their own children.
A 2022 study by the Pew Research Center revealed that more than half in this age group (54%) have a living parent age 65 or older and are either raising a child younger than 18 or financially supporting an adult child.
Many families are already struggling to save sufficiently for their own retirements. According to the 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, the most recent data from the Federal Reserve, the average retirement savings for all families in the United States was…