Inheritance Planning Strategies
Over the next two decades, an estimated $124 trillion will move from one generation to the next, creating the largest wealth transfer in history. And women are poised to inherit roughly 70% of that wealth. With longer lifespans, increasing leadership in households and businesses, and a growing role in financial decision-making, women will become one of the most powerful financial forces in the coming years.
This shift represents a tremendous opportunity—but also a major responsibility. Understanding how to prepare is key.
How you Can Prepare:
Build Financial Confidence Early
Financial confidence is one of the strongest predictors of long-term financial independence—especially during periods of transition. Even if you’re not the primary financial decision-maker today, developing a solid understanding of your household finances empowers you to step in confidently when needed.
This includes knowing:
How your accounts are structured
Where assets are held
What investments you own
How much risk you’re taking
What insurance policies or estate documents exist
It is important to build familiarity and clarity now so you’re prepared to make informed decisions later, especially when emotions or urgency are high. With the right guidance, financial confidence becomes a lifelong skill that grows with you.
Understand the Assets you May Inherit
The Great Wealth Transfer is not just about money changing hands—it’s about understanding the type of assets you could inherit and how each one works. Different assets come with different rules, timelines, risks, and opportunities.
Women may inherit:
Retirement accounts: IRAs, 401(k)s, pensions
Brokerage portfolios: Stocks, bonds, mutual funds
Real estate: Primary homes, vacation homes, rental properties
Insurance proceeds: Life insurance payouts or annuity benefits
Business ownership: Shares in family businesses or partnerships
Trust assets: Revocable or irrevocable trusts with specific rules
Knowing what may eventually pass to you helps you prepare mentally and financially before decisions need to be made. It also allows you to have meaningful conversations with parents, spouses, or family members now—so you’re not left guessing during an emotional moment later.
Know the Tax Rules
Inherited wealth often comes with complex tax considerations. Without clear guidance, it’s easy to make decisions that increase your tax burden or reduce the long-term value of what you’ve received.
Key areas women should understand include:
Step-up in cost basis: How inherited investments may receive a reset in value for tax purposes
Required distributions from inherited retirement accounts
Capital gains taxes when selling inherited real estate
Trust taxation rules
Estate tax thresholds (federal and state)
Getting ahead of these rules can protect your inheritance and work toward ensuring you keep more of what’s meant for your future. Thoughtful planning—especially before selling or transferring assets—can potentially result in significant long-term savings.
Build your Own Financial Plan Now
The strongest way to prepare for inherited wealth is to have a solid financial foundation of your own. When your personal plan is clear (your goals, your retirement strategy, your investment approach) it becomes much easier to integrate new assets intentionally, rather than reactively.
A strong long-term plan includes:
A retirement income strategy
A diversified investment portfolio
Clear short-, mid-, and long-term savings goals
Proper insurance and risk protection
An up-to-date estate plan strategy
A tax-efficient strategy to building wealth
This clarity helps work toward ensuring that any inheritance enhances your life, strengthens your long-term financial independence, and supports your vision for the future, not just temporarily increasing your account balances.
*There is no guarantee that a diversified portfolio will enhance overall returns or outperform a non-diversified portfolio. Diversification does not protect against market risk.
SOURCE:
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/03/12/most-of-the-124-trillion-great-wealth-transfer-will-go-to-women.html