I think far more parents are giving before death than you give credit for. For one thing, the legal craziness of inheritance law makes it much easier to give during life. Trusts, estate planning, etc. have only a limited ability to improve things, although they’re better than nothing.
I am typical in that I can only give effectively when my children have already gotten their OWN lives moving in the right direction. Try giving a valuable art collection, for example, to someone who can’t even decide whether they ever want a fixed address. Does that make you feel it’ll be in good hands? Or that maybe you should sell it, and leave them the money? The RECEIVING generation have an equally important role to play, if they want to optimize outcomes.
Glad to hear it, although that Reddit thread I cited attracted many comments in agreement. Maybe because the Redditor was a nephew, not a child — but why not help them too if one can? As for kids being ready to receive, that’s a question everyone has to ask about their own and also is why much of estate planning is about setting up the transfer of wealth gradually.
I think far more parents are giving before death than you give credit for. For one thing, the legal craziness of inheritance law makes it much easier to give during life. Trusts, estate planning, etc. have only a limited ability to improve things, although they’re better than nothing.
I am typical in that I can only give effectively when my children have already gotten their OWN lives moving in the right direction. Try giving a valuable art collection, for example, to someone who can’t even decide whether they ever want a fixed address. Does that make you feel it’ll be in good hands? Or that maybe you should sell it, and leave them the money? The RECEIVING generation have an equally important role to play, if they want to optimize outcomes.
Glad to hear it, although that Reddit thread I cited attracted many comments in agreement. Maybe because the Redditor was a nephew, not a child — but why not help them too if one can? As for kids being ready to receive, that’s a question everyone has to ask about their own and also is why much of estate planning is about setting up the transfer of wealth gradually.
You should read the biography of Hetty Green.