Distribution of income sources of recent retirees: findings from the New Beneficiary Survey

Using data from the New Beneficiary Survey, this article examines income received by the newly retired from assets, employer-provided pensions, and social security. Today's retirees commonly possess pension or asset income to supplement social security. The proportions with asset income were 83 percent for married men and their wives and 69 percent for the unmarried. The proportions with pension income were 56 percent for the married couples and 42 percent for the unmarried. The article finds that up through the middle of the income distribution, social security remains the main income component. In addition to these traditional income sources of the retired, the data also highlight the important role of earnings among many of the new beneficiaries--44 percent of the married couples and 27 percent of the unmarried had current earnings.