One in four Baby Boomers don’t trust the younger generation to use their inheritance wisely, according to a national survey by professional services firm, Progeny.
Additionally, nearly half (48 percent) of Baby Boomers say the attitudes and priorities of younger generations affect their decision-making around transferring wealth to the next generation.
The research report – Planning to pass it on – conducted by YouGov for Progeny, aimed to uncover national attitudes around gifting or leaving money as an inheritance, and polled three generations for their views.
Intention without action
The majority of respondents said they intend to pass on something to the next generations of their family, with 60 percent planning to do so.
However, of those aiming to provide financial support or inheritance to loved ones, the majority questioned (49 percent) didn’t know, beyond that, how they might do it.
Fewer than half (47 percent) of Baby Boomers were confident about making plans or taking financial decisions about transferring wealth, and a third (32 percent) said they were not confident.
Around the same proportion of Generation X and Millennials (45 percent) were confident about making use of any received inheritance, versus 39 percent who said they were not confident.
Enjoy life to the full
However, one fifth of respondents stated that they didn’t want to pass on a significant sum of money to their loved ones.
Nearly half of those questioned (49 percent) felt it was more important to use their money to enjoy life to the full than to leave an inheritance.
Cost of living concerns
There was clear evidence of the impact of the cost-of-living crisis in the immediate financial goals of the survey respondents.
The highest proportion (45 percent) said that ensuring they meet regular financial commitments was their top financial goal, followed by 35 percent who wanted to have enough cash in case of emergencies and 29 percent who were focused on saving enough to enjoy retirement.
At the top of their list of financial concerns or challenges was the increase in the cost of living, followed by their anxieties over not saving enough and not having enough for emergencies.
