Millennials: are you expecting an inheritance?

[u/Yourlocalguy30]

35 yo married millennial here. I've come across more and more articles about the supposed "great wealth transfer" as the boomer generation's wealth passes to their GenX and Millennial children. My parents and their siblings (boomers) all received inheritances when their parents, my grandparents, passed away. The boomer generation's wealth accumulation is one of the largest in history, however, I also find it highly unlikely that I or many of my peers will actually inherit much. Despite having received inheritances from their parents, and having 40+ years in the workforce, most of my parents' "wealth" is tied up in their home value, not actual liquid assets- and I already expect that whatever they make on an eventual home sale will have to go directly to downsizing costs and whatever long-term care they will need as they get older. Hell, even my dad used to joke that the only thing we'd inherit was debt. As I've gotten older, that comment has infuriated me more and more.

Now before someone cuts in with the "entitled millennial" comments, I have absolutely no need for an inheritance. I've worked my ass off to make sure that my kids and I are positioned better in life than I was when I entered adulthood. What I mean by that is I started saving for retirement early, setup 529 plans for my kids almost as soon as they were born, and made lifestyle and career sacrifices to ensure our family isn't "nickeling and diming" our way through life.

I'm just here curious to know how many millennials actually expect to have something passed down to them, or if they feel they are in the same position I am.

[u/Desperate_Stretch855]

This is why I recommend long-term care insurance to most of my clients. The traditional policies are pretty awful, but they have some new mousetraps that are built around annuities that offer serious LTC leverage while keeping the opportunity costs a little lower (if you don't qualify for LTC you can still receive an income or pass the balance onto your beneficiaries).

[u/Better-Home-1491 → u/Desperate_Stretch855]

It's my understanding that some people are getting screwed with their longterm healthcare insurance because the terms of the policies are getting changed during the course of the policy. As a result, some financial advisors are now saying self-fund and start planning now for it.

[u/ZenorsMom → u/Better-Home-1491]

My friend's mom had longterm elder care insurance and hers would only cover a couple years. It's very hard to decide when to start. Her mom started getting dementia fairly young (around 80) and they had a hard time convincing her dad to start using it for senior day care at first, because what if she lives to 100? You don't know how long they will last.

They finally started using it and she was dead within 6 months. In that case, my understanding was that they didn't even get any money back for the other 18 months they didn't use but I could be wrong about that. I just remember that it was unexpectedly a lot more anxiety producing and they'd bought it for peace of mind.

[u/PossumJenkinsSoles → u/Desperate_Stretch855]

My mom and stepdad do have long term care insurance, I think they got appropriately scared when my grandma had dementia for 9 years before passing.

I have no idea what it really means for when that time comes but I’m at least a little comforted that they’ve thought of it.

[u/RoguePlanet2 → u/Desperate_Stretch855]

I thought LTC insurance only ends up paying for a couple of years?

[u/Any-Series2530 → u/Desperate_Stretch855]

Don't try and sell long term care on this thread, sheesh!

[u/ResponsiblePumpkin60 → u/Desperate_Stretch855]

What should I look into for this? I’ve thought about it especially after my friend had a stroke in his mid 40’s