I was talking to a friend of mine recently who's in her mid-40s, and she told me that she's yet to save so much as a dime in an IRA or 401(k) plan, despite working full time for most of her adult life. Her spouse, meanwhile, contributes minimally to his workplace 401(k), and while I don't know what his exact savings rate is, my friend confirmed that he only puts in enough money to get whatever match his employer offers.

When I asked my friend why she and her spouse weren't saving more for retirement, her response was something along the lines of, "Well, I don't really think we need to." When I pushed harder, she told me she expected their costs to be a lot lower in retirement -- low enough that their Social Security benefits would probably suffice.

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