57% of retirees carry debt and 27% live on Social Security alone — 3 signs you're beating the odds

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For most retirees, the size of their nest egg is probably the only number they use to measure their progress and lifestyle with their peers. But the story of your personal finances in your 60s, 70s and 80s can go much deeper than that headline number.

In fact, you may already be financially ahead of some of your peers — even if they have much more money saved up than you — and not know it.

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Here are the top three crystal-clear signs you’re financially ahead of most U.S. retirees.

1. You’re not carrying consumer debt

Consumer debt has silently become a major problem for older Americans in recent years. Roughly 57.3% of retirees had some level of consumer debt, according to the Federal Reserve’s 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances (1).

While managing credit card payments and auto loans is never easy, the difficulty ramps up when you’re living on a fixed income. This could be why nearly 21% of older adults had delinquent debt, meaning they were at least 60 days behind on their payments, according to a study funded by the TIAA Institute and the Wharton School’s Pension Research Council (2).

So, if you’ve managed to avoid consumer debt, you’re already ahead of your peers. If you haven’t, this could be the right time to consider paying these expensive loans off.

One possible way to do this is by consolidating your debt through a platform like Credible. Its online marketplace lets you comparison-shop for the lowest interest rates with just a few clicks. In less than three minutes, you’ll see all the lenders willing to help pay off your credit cards or other debts with a single personal loan.

If you owe a substantial amount, you may also want to see if you qualify for a debt relief program to help clear a significant portion of your debt.

With Freedom Debt Relief, you can speak with a certified debt relief consultant for free, who can show you how much you can save by partnering with them.

If you’re eligible, they can negotiate settlements with your creditors until all of your enrolled debt is resolved.

2. Social Security is not your sole source of income

For a surprisingly large number of retired Americans, the government benefit check is a big portion of their income.

In fact, a survey by The Senior Citizens League (3), a non-profit that advocates for increased Social Security benefits, found that about 27% of retirees relied exclusively on Social Security for their income. Meanwhile, nearly 67% said that the benefit check accounted for more than 50% of their monthly income.

Given that the average monthly benefit payout is just $2,071 as of January 2026, according to the Social Security Administration (4), it’s easy to see why so many retired Americans are struggling to make ends meet.

With that in mind, if benefits account for less than half of your monthly cash flow, you’re doing better than most of your peers. But that doesn’t mean your portfolio is immune to changes in the stock market, especially if it isn’t diversified.

If you’re trying to build up a diversified pool of assets and income, you could take a closer look at safe haven assets like gold. For example, a gold IRA fromGoldco lets you hold physical gold and other metals while still getting the tax advantages of an IRA.

Goldco is widely regarded as one of the leading companies in the space, with a 4.8/5 rating on Trustpilot and an A+ from the Better Business Bureau. They also offer a guaranteed buyback program, meaning they’ll repurchase your metals at the highest price, according to market value, if you ever decide to sell.

What’s more, if you want to explore whether gold and other precious metals could be a helpful hedge for your portfolio, you can download Goldco’s free gold and silver guide to see if it’s a good fit for you.

3. You own your home

You might assume that most older Americans have had plenty of time to pay off their mortgages. But that’s simply not the case anymore. Between 1989 and 2022, the share of homeowners between the ages of 65 and 79 who had an outstanding mortgage rose from 24% to 41%, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University (5). Among those 80 and over, the change was even more dramatic, rising from 3% to 31% in the same period.

Meanwhile, 13.4% of renters across the country were 65 or over, according to an analysis by Point2Homes (6).

Simply put, many older Americans are either paying monthly interest or rent in retirement, meaning that if you’re lucky enough to own your residence free and clear, that’s worth celebrating.

In fact, your home equity could serve as a crucial financial lifeline when you need it, since a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) can let you tap into your property wealth when you need extra cash. A HELOC is basically a revolving line of credit that leverages the equity in your home as collateral, so that you can borrow and repay funds as needed — similar to a credit card

For example, AmeriSave offers a flexible HELOC that lets homeowners borrow against their equity as needed during a draw period, making it useful for renovations or debt consolidation. The application is mostly online and available in most states.

It’s a good fit for borrowers who want convenience and flexibility rather than a lump-sum loan up front. You can draw funds only when you need them, so it’s useful for ongoing or unpredictable costs. Interest is charged only on what you use, and you repay the balance over time. It’s essentially a flexible credit line secured by your home, delivered through a mostly online application process.

Having the option to tap into home equity can put you ahead of the game — and many of your retired peers.

57% of retirees carry debt and 27% live on Social Security alone — 3 signs you’re beating the odds

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