Meanwhile, 50% of Advisors Report Some Clients Made Potentially Risky Moves in Reaction to Current Cost Pressures
Expensive Today, Elusive Tomorrow: A Survey about Affordability and the 2026 Election
WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CFP® professionals report that the long-term viability of safety nets Americans have paid into for decades is among the top concerns discussed with clients over the past 12 months. At the same time, half of advisors say they have seen clients take potentially shortsighted actions that could put their retirement plans at risk in order to manage today’s costs. According to a new CFP Board Report, Expensive Today, Elusive Tomorrow: A Survey About Affordability and the 2026 Elections, that tension is playing out across the country as rising costs reshape Americans’ financial plans.
Seventy-eight percent of CFP® professionals report that clients are concerned about Social Security’s long-term viability, with 73% expressing similar unease about Medicare. Meanwhile, 50% of advisors say affordability pressures are driving some clients to make reactive decisions that could have negative long-term impacts, including early withdrawals from retirement accounts (29%), reducing or eliminating retirement contributions (20%) or taking on high-interest debt to cover expenses (18%).
Optimism holds, despite affordability pressures and fear of missing long-term goals
The strain extends beyond retirement decisions. While 7 in 10 CFP® professionals (68%) describe their clients’ overall financial outlook as positive, 69% report that clients have grown more worried about affordability over the past 12 months. That concern includes both day-to-day expenses (53%) and long-term financial goals (60%). Three in five CFP® professionals (61%) also say clients now worry that affordability challenges could put at least one financial goal out of reach, including purchasing a home (34%), achieving financial independence (27%) and affording healthcare (23%).
“The rising cost of living is forcing people to make hard choices with their money,” said CFP Board CEO K. Dane Snowden. “Some of these choices solve an immediate challenge but create a bigger one later. CFP® professionals can help people manage growing costs today without giving up on the future they are working to build.”
Three quarters of advisors say clients are acting on affordability, less-so for politics
Most of the top affordability concerns reported by advisors, in addition to Social Security and Medicare, are closely tied to public policy. Concerns raised in conversation with CFP® professionals include healthcare (88%), retirement plans (88%), tax policies (84%), gas and energy prices (56%) and interest rates (55%).
Current costs seem to be shaping client behavior far more than the potential impact of midterm elections. Just 29% of CFP® professionals say their clients have taken financial action in anticipation of the November 2026 election results, compared with three-quarters who have acted or considered acting in response to rising costs.
“Clients are far more likely to adjust their finances in response to affordability pressures than an election outcome, and that gap shows where the real pressure lies,” said Kevin Roth, Ph.D., Managing Director of Research at CFP Board. “A comprehensive financial plan accounts for both types of uncertainty, helping clients stay focused on what they can control rather than react to short-term noise.”
Financial planning turns short-term pressure into long-term strategy
Most CFP® professionals (85%) are making specific recommendations to help clients respond to affordability challenges without abandoning long-term goals, including stress-testing financial plans against a recessionary scenario (54%) and building or rebuilding an emergency fund to a defined target (54%). They are also steering clients toward strategic adjustments rather than more drastic moves, such as revising retirement contribution rates (34%) and accelerating debt paydown (33%).
To find a CFP® professional who can help you adapt to near-term financial pressures and stay focused on your long-term goals, visit LetsMakeAPlan.org.
Download and read the full Expensive Today, Elusive Tomorrow: A Survey About Affordability and the 2026 Elections report here.
METHODOLOGY
On July 9, 2026, CFP Board sent a 13-question survey to randomly selected CFP® professionals nationwide. The survey generated responses from 440 CFP® professionals when it closed on July 27, 2026. The survey data collected, which serves as the basis of this report, is subject to a sampling error of +/- 4.7% at the 95% confidence interval.
ABOUT CFP BOARD
CFP Board is the professional body for personal financial planners in the U.S. CFP Board consists of two affiliated organizations focused on advancing the financial planning profession for the public’s benefit. CFP Board of Standards sets and upholds standards for financial planning and administers the prestigious CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® certification — widely recognized by the public, advisors and firms as the standard for financial planners — so that the public has access to the benefits of competent and ethical financial planning. CFP® certification is held by more than 110,000 people in the U.S. CFP Board Center for Financial Planning addresses diversity and workforce development challenges and conducts and publishes research that adds to the financial planning profession’s body of knowledge.
CONTACT: Jane Riley Jacobsen, Director of Public Relations, P: 202-379-2305, E: [email protected]
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