Financial Advisors Fail to Ease Retiree Anxiety Over Federal Policy Risk

Thirty-three percent of near-retirees and retirees have shifted to more conservative investments, and 21% of those still working have postponed their retirement dates. These defensive responses follow an increase in federal policy uncertainty since the start of 2025. Thirty-nine percent of investors say their concern for their financial future has increased, while 61% report a decline in confidence that federal policy will benefit Americans.

Financial advisors are conflicted. While 47% of advisors say the state of the economy improved between 2024 and early 2025, they simultaneously express concern over Social Security, Medicare, federal debt, and inflation. Seventy-nine percent of advisors are worried about high inflation, 65% are worried about a cut in Social Security benefits, and 63% of the source's sample of advisors are worried about a major decline in the stock market.

This ambivalence leads to cautious advice. Forty-nine percent of advisors have suggested changes to investments, and 25% of those recommending changes suggested a more conservative allocation. Additionally, 22% of advisors have recommended that clients increase emergency savings since the beginning of 2025.

Because advisors maintain a high-level optimism that contradicts their specific risk concerns, they have no significant impact on their clients' views of the financial future.