i could come up with 4/5 ways to fix SS. i am an idiot and they would all suck. the problem for the future is inflation. it is a problem for every part of the economy. us boomers will likely mostly get by on pensions,ss,savings and lower levels of real needs day to day. gen x will be +/-. many will have investments,401s,etc. but not all will. mils,z are in trouble. you speak of a 60K income which is now needed to just get by. rents @ 2K,buying any house needing >100k incomes,cars and trucks going 20-90k+. major appliances needing replacement every 7 yr. food costs 3-5x in 80s. there is likely to be nothing left for saving/investing.Not necessarily. The realized rate of return depends on several factors:
1. The length of time it has been put into a 401K vs the real inflation rate. The longer, the lower the real return. This is especially true in the 2000s.
2. What the 401K is invested in. Whatever it is invested in will determine the actual return, which then still gets eaten away by inflation.
3. Investment losses, which do happen.
4. Any premature withdrawals, which usually have to be paid back with interest.
5. Taxes. Traditional 401K's are taxed as regular income at retirement while only the employer contribution is taxed in a Roth 401K since you contribution is post-taxation.
6. The actual matching by the employer. This can be variable, based on the company, and is optional.
7. Maximum yearly contribution ceilings.
401K's are not a panacea and it must be remembered that this money is effectively tied up until retirement within the financial sector of the economy. Taxes, inflation and risk eat away at the return and most people never consider these aspects, never realizing that the rate of return they think they are getting is higher than what they actually receive.
got no clue for a solution. but a warning. in history these kinds of unfixable problems have frequently caused massive social disruptions,wars and societal collapse.