Millennials set for “inheritance boom"

Millennials in the UK are set to receive an “inheritance boom” a report by the Resolution Foundation says, but this will come too late to address generational inequality in the UK.



More than two thirds of people aged 20-35 have parents who own property, and today’s young adults are expected to receive inheritance windfalls when their older relatives die.

However, longer life expectancies mean that this is unlikely to solve the problems of generational inequality and low homeownership amongst Millennials in the near future.

The average age a young person stands to inherit their parents’ wealth is 61, beyond the expensive child-rearing stage in their lives.

Laura Gardiner, the author of the report, said “This is likely to be very welcome news for those millennials, including some from poorer backgrounds who in the past would have been unlikely to receive bequests. They have the good fortune to benefit from the luck of the baby boomer generation.”

“But inheritance is not the silver bullet that will get a whole new generation on the housing ladder or address growing wealth gaps in society.”

“Even for those millennials who will receive a bequest, it’s unlikely to come when they’re coupling up, having children, and trying to buy a family home when the extra wealth would be much needed, but as they approach retirement instead.”

Home ownership has fallen significantly in recent years, with people born after 1981 accumulating significantly less wealth than their parents.