Women Are About To Inherit $30 Trillion in ‘Great Wealth Transfer’ — How To Prepare for Your Windfall

Weekend Images Inc. / Getty Images

Commitment to Our Readers

GOBankingRates' editorial team is committed to bringing you unbiased reviews and information. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate financial products and services - our reviews and ratings are not influenced by advertisers. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and our products and services review methodology.

20 Years
Helping You Live Richer

Reviewed
by Experts

Trusted by
Millions of Readers

American women are poised to inherit $30 trillion in wealth in the next 10 years in what experts are calling the Great Wealth Transfer, already in progress. Much of this money will be passed generationally, and a significant amount will move from men to their wives, according to The Rising Wealth of Women, a Bank of America Institute report published last year. Although this transfer is narrowing wealth disparities between women and men, the study found that women are still less confident in their ability to manage a financial windfall. 

A recent survey from Citizens Bank found 66% of Gen Z women and 50% of millennial women said they’d delayed actively managing their wealth because they lacked confidence or didn’t know how to do it, and just 16% felt completely confident in their ability to manage an inheritance. 

Keep reading to learn how to take control of your money and prepare for your eventual windfall.

Talk To Your Family About Estate Planning

The vast majority of women who’ve already inherited money from their parents or their husbands felt unprepared. Global wealth manager UBS noted in its May Own Your Worth report that 40% of women who inherited from their parents had done so with no wealth-transfer or estate plan in place. Widowed women faced similar predicaments, with 25% not even knowing where their husbands’ wealth was.

At the very least, know what assets your family has, where they’re held and how they’ll pass on to you. Tax planning is also important, according to 87% of the inheritance recipients surveyed by UBS.

Define Your Financial Goals

Defining your short-term and long-term goals in writing gives you a blueprint to guide your financial decisions now and after you’ve received your inheritance. These priorities might include:

• Building an emergency fund
• Saving for retirement
• Paying off debt
• Starting a business
• Saving for your kids’ education
• Buying a home
• Planning your own estate

Create a Budget

It’s never too early to start working toward your financial goals. A budget is the best way to do it. In addition to eliminating waste, it gets you in the habit of spending mindfully and deliberately. That accountability is the key to financial health, and it’ll give you more choices when it comes time to decide how to use your inherited funds.

Invest In Financial Education

A high percentage of women have never had their own investment account — and those who do invest do so more conservatively compared to men. Bank of America found that they allocate smaller percentages of their portfolios to stocks, for example, and are less likely to invest in risky assets like cryptocurrency.

That’s not a bad thing if it aligns with your risk tolerance. But if you’re staying out of the market or investing conservatively because you don’t feel competent enough to take more risk, make financial education a priority. Many resources are available online. You can find continuing/community ed courses through local colleges and universities.

Work With a Professional

A certified financial planner (CFP) can help advise you on the best approach to meet your financial goals and help you figure out how your inheritance fits into that plan — and into your own estate plan as well. When the time comes, they can also advise you about the benefits of working with an attorney, tax accountant and/or insurance agent to protect your expanding assets.

Preparing For the Windfall

It’s not unusual to have mixed feelings about planning for an inheritance. After all, it forces you to acknowledge your family members’ and your own mortality. But laying the groundwork now can put everyone’s minds at ease knowing that you’re ready to receive this transfer of wealth and prepare the next generation to receive theirs.

Share This Article: