$124 trillion in financial assets is expected to move from U.S. households to heirs and other beneficiaries over roughly 20 years, including about $85 trillion to Gen X and millennial children.
Two in five families have never discussed inheritance plans, and many parents cite uncertainty over longevity, inflation and healthcare costs, leaving adult children unclear about what—if anything—they will receive.
The windfall will be uneven: more than half of the projected transfer is concentrated in the richest 2% of households, while about half of parents expecting to leave an inheritance estimate estates below $500,000.
Planning remains thin even as homes, insurance and retirement accounts make up much of the wealth: only 4 in 10 parents report having a will, and just 14% have written a letter of instruction.
The communication gap could shape housing, education and tax outcomes for millions of heirs, especially as non-spouse beneficiaries of traditional retirement accounts now generally must empty them within 10 years.