WM Market Reports
US Wealth Transfer To Surpass $84 Trillion By 2045 – Cerulli
Huge numbers are often quoted when estimating how large wealth transfers in major countries will be in the next few decades. The Boston-based firm gives its take on the size of the shift, especially for high net worth and UHNW households.
A new report reckons that US households will transfer $84.4
trillion of wealth through to 2045, highlighting why the wealth
management industry can look forward to busy times for the
foreseeable future, regardless of the political and
economic weather.
Huge numbers are bruited about on how many trillions of dollars –
or equivalent – will be passed from one generation to the next in
the coming years. Data and analytics firm Cerulli
Associates has added its own numbers to the mix.
What is particularly striking is that about 42 per cent of the
wealth shift will involve high net worth and ultra-HNW
households, even though they account for just 1.5 per cent of all
households. This will underscore concerns about the level of
wealth concentration in the US.
The figures come from the Boston-based firm’s report, US
High Net Worth and Ultra-High Net Worth Markets 2021: Evolving
Wealth Demographics.
Out of the $84.4 trillion figure, Cerulli said that $72.6
trillion in assets will be transferred to heirs, while $11.9
trillion will be donated to charities. More than $53 trillion
will be transferred from households in the Baby Boomer
generation, representing 63 per cent of all transfers.
Silent Generation (persons born between 1925 to 1945) households
and those older stand to transfer $15.8 trillion, which will
primarily take place over the next decade. $35.8 trillion (42 per
cent) of the overall total volume of transfers is expected to
come from HNW and UHNW households.
Cerulli said the figures show that firms which are able to handle
complex planning and structuring tactics will be important allies
for clients as taxes become a more pressing worry. Grantor trusts
(77 per cent) are far and away the most common way to increase
the tax-efficiency of wealth transfer events among HNW practices,
followed by spousal lifetime access trusts (54 per cent) and
strategic gifting (46 per cent).
