The largest ever transfer of wealth from one generation to another is expected to occur in the next 30 years, with somewhere in the region of £5.5tn-£7tn passing on in the UK[1]. This is being called the great wealth transfer. Therefore, it is unsurprising that inheritance planning is an increasingly important part of wealth management.
Rising property prices, asset price inflation and frozen tax thresholds mean that more and more people are being dragged into paying inheritance tax (IHT), with HMRC receipts reaching £7bn between April 2024 and January 2025[2]. Given that even though this figure is large it represents less than 1% of total tax revenues and was levied on only 4% of the population, a chancellor looking to shore up public finances may find IHT an appealing target.
History suggests that preserving and growing intergenerational wealth is notoriously challenging. Unfortunately, it is far too common for people to address this issue in the wrong place, initially focusing on what they invest in rather than their personal financial framework. Identifying investment goals, aims and timeframes is the best place to start in our experience, allowing you to identify the optimal approach that will provide the bases and essential guidelines in managing your wealth.
Being proactive gives you the best chance of achieving your goals. Having discussion around death and legacy can be difficult, but it is far easier to talk about it when you are in a stable position in your life. Managing finances and investing are often emotive, so it is far from ideal o gave to make big decisions when you’re going through emotional distress linked to sickness or bereavement. Even high-level discussions with practical steps of who to contact if you become incapacitated can make the process far less painful.
We help our clients look at various ways they could reduce their IHT liability, pass on as much wealth as possible to loved ones, and structure their family wealth to suit their own needs and circumstances.
