DINKs lag behind parents on financial wellness

58% of DINKs have not started making financial plans for their retirement.

DINKs (Dual Income, No Kids) are financially worse off than those who have kids, the OCBC Financial Wellness Index 2024 revealed.

According to the report, DINKs trails parents on 8 out of 24 OCBC Financial Wellness Index indicators. Notably, retirement planning is a key indicator where DINKs fare considerably worse than parents (score of 33 vs 44).

The report said that this challenges the popular perception that DINKs – those who are married, engaged or in a serious relationship, and do not have children and do not support their partner financially – are well ahead of parents in all facets of financial wellness as they have no children to support.

DINKs are less prepared for retirement than parents

Given their dual-income, no-kids status, DINKs may not feel the urgency or need to plan for the long term. 58% of DINKs have not started making financial plans for their retirement. In contrast, only 40% of parents have not done so. Amongst DINKs without a retirement plan, more than half (55%) indicated that they do not intend to start retirement planning in the next 12 months.

Despite not having retirement plans, such DINKs are not compromising on their dream retirement lifestyles. 1 in 4 DINKs without a retirement plan desire the most expensive retirement lifestyle. However, almost 9 in 10 DINKs without a retirement plan (85%) underestimate the amount needed for retirement.

They want to retire early as well – just over a third (34%) of DINKs without a retirement plan wish to retire by the age of 55, ahead of the official retirement age of 63. In comparison, only a fifth (22%) of parents without a retirement plan have such aspirations.

Moreover, only a smaller proportion of DINKs (39%) review their financial plans annually compared to parents (50%). 37% of DINKs either do not set a budget at all or do not stick closely to it, a higher proportion than parents (30%). DINKs may not feel the urgency to keep track of their current expenses while parents tend to be more conscientious.

Additionally, fewer DINKs (53%) than parents (60%) are aware of tax relief schemes.

Only 57% of DINKs have made arrangements to ensure that their finances are passed on after they die. This contrasts sharply with parents, where 82% of them have done so – understandable given that most parents tend to leave their assets to their children while DINKs, by definition, would not do.

These findings were based on an online survey of 2,000 respondents between the ages of 21 and 65 conducted in August this year.