Just in the Media

A regular contributor to the DAILY MAVERICK, Bruce Cameron says: "Most living annuity pensioners had already received a serious body blow even before the virus and the downgrade of South Africa’s debt, with many already having high drawdowns. Despite this, 90% of South African pensioners want living annuities on which to retire, while at the same time research undertaken by Sanlam and Just SA finds that 87% of retirees want security of income." 

BUSINESS DAY reports that almost every asset class is showing severe losses for the quarter to date and asset managers are calling March an unprecedented month for investments as concerns on the effect of the coronavirus on economies around the world spread. Good news for pensioners is that the cost of purchasing a guaranteed income for life has gone down by almost as much as the fall in value of balanced portfolios, says Just CEO Deane Moore.

Should market conditions persist for the next 12 months, retirement income specialist Just believes that pensioners may run out of money years earlier than in normal investment conditions. Just CEO Deane Moore looks at some sensible steps that pensioners can take to protect their income in the current climate in an article featured on BUSINESS TECH.

CEO Deane Moore spoke to Michael Avery on CLASSIC BUSINESS about how retirees are facing the risk of not having a sustainable income for life in an environment where investment markets have crashed amid COVID-19, and retirement savings have been significantly reduced. He provides some practical solutions to protect their income for life. [Audio]

MOONSTONE reports that the Coronavirus has shattered the myth that there is no place for the guaranteed annuities. Retirement in the time of COVID-19, which sees pensioners facing not only the risk of contracting the Coronavirus, but also the risk of not having an income that can sustain them for life due to the current environment that has seen investment markets crash, reducing retirement savings substantially. 

Just Product Actuary, Johann Swanepoel, featured in the April edition of MONEY MARKETING tackling the longstanding debate of which is best – a life annuity or a living annuity? At Just, we believe it is both, and a blend of the two is best.

Only 6% of South Africans will be able to retire comfortably, according to National Treasury. Further to this, the Just Retirement Insights survey conducted by Just SA estimates that there is a 22% shortfall between expectations and actual retirement provisions based on current annuity rates.

Without an accurate understanding of your current financial situation and discussing your unique retirement needs, it is almost impossible to set realistic and achievable financial goals, let alone work towards them. The assistance of an independent adviser should not be restricted to high-income earners only and we strongly recommend that everyone approaching retirement compare product features and pricing of available retirement solutions with a trusted specialist, in order to make informed choices. This should also help to close the gap between the expectations and reality of retirement.

Two critical retirement planning questions you need to make assumptions about are - how long will I live and how well will I live? We don't have the answers, but there is now more information on the possibilities and probabilities. We need to plan and save for how much income we will need in our later years when we stop working, but we don't know, with certainty, when we will die. So this critical financial planning still involves quite a bit of guesswork, but expert insights can help you avoid costly mistakes.

A guaranteed income for life and leaving an inheritance for loved ones are two of the most important motivators South Africans list when they reach their golden age. This is according to Just Retirement Insight – independent research commissioned by Just – in which South Africans between the ages of 55 and 85 years in the major metropolitan areas were interviewed. When it comes to income in retirement, 89% of survey respondents wanted a guaranteed income for life (up from 86% in Just’s 2015 survey).