Who would have thought that blowing your inheritance would be a significant issue for baby boomers, millennials, and any other group that stands to inherit a large sum of money from their parents and family? This is a significant problem for over 33% or one in three consumers across the continent. They receive money from an inheritance and then spend it in various ways, and sometimes have little to show for it other than a good time or a few extra things such as cars and toys. With many consumers not saving sufficiently for retirement, we wonder why more do not invest these funds and at least live off the income.
Blowing Your Inheritance
Trillions of dollars will change hands as baby boomers exit the world. They will transfer their wealth to their families over the next 20 years. We happen to believe that a significant amount of this money should be placed in investments. It will help fund retirements in the future. Most advisers suggest that even one million in savings is insufficient to ensure a comfortable retirement. When you can save your money for retirement, why not take it? This is not winning the lottery.
The experts agree that one of the best ways to deal with an inheritance is to place it in a secure savings account, perhaps a GIC. Let it sit there until you have emotionally dealt with the emotions surrounding the inheritance. It would help if you had time to get over the death of your family member. It would help if you had time to get over the idea of having all this money. Time is required to formulate a plan regarding what you will do with the money.
Spend some of it to pay off the debt that you may have and buy yourself a small reward of some kind. But invest most of the funds into an investment that will make your retirement more secure. It would be a real shame to squander the money and then live in less-than-ideal conditions during your retirement years!