SOBERING STATISTICS At the risk of being a party pooper: Higher stock and home values aren't doing much to brighten the retirement outlook. That's the message in a new study—"Will the Rebound in Equities and Housing Save Retirements?"—from the Boston College Center for Retirement Research. The report updates the center's National Retirement Risk Index, which measures the percentage of households at risk of being unable to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living in retirement.

The most recent survey, completed...