The three dominant generations seem to have very different views on investing and are split when describing their worst financial nightmares, according to a new survey released by Sunsuper.
There was a clear split between Generation X, Generation Y and Baby Boomers on where they preferred to keep their money, according to Sunsuper general manager customer experience Teifi Whatley.
"Gen Xs were more likely to keep their money invested in property (24 per cent), whereas Baby Boomers were most likely to keep their savings invested in term deposits (26 per cent) or shares (15 per cent)," Whatley said.
"Gen Ys were the most likely to put their money in a savings account (68 per cent) and least likely to put it in a term deposit, perhaps due to their lack of experience with term deposits and greater need for easy access to their money."
Generation Y was also worried about not being able to support their family and buy the things they want, Whatley added.
"Gen Xs, however, were most likely to feel their biggest financial nightmare was not being able to pay the mortgage, whereas Baby Boomers thought not having enough money to retire and losing their savings was more likely to cause them bad dreams," Whatley said.
But the biggest split came when asked how their current financial position compared to the same time last year.
Baby Boomers felt worse off now than this time last year, the survey found.
"These results indicate that this generation possibly still has a lack of confidence in financial markets and the global economy post-global financial crisis, with 19 per cent of Baby Boomers still concerned about a recession in Australia or overseas," Whatley said.
Generation X mostly felt no change in their financial circumstances since last year, while Generation Y was most likely to think it was better off.
The study, conducted by IPSOS for Sunsuper, surveyed more than 1300 Australians and is part of the 2012 Sunsuper Wealth Index series.
