Stats, Facts & Ruminations
Will, or Will Not?
Ouch.68 percentof Americans lack a valid will.
Of this group,most have never even created an estate planor made plans for their legacy. Others have old wills that have not been updated to account for family births or deaths; divorces; stepchildren; ex-spouses; business partnerships; the sale of real estate; income changes, etc.
Key Points
- The current $30 to $70 trillion is the greatest wealth transfer in history (click for hard core numbers)
- About 6,000 baby boomers die every day
- The total number is about 85 million
- Almost 30 million are dead and 55 million to go
- Average Bequest: $82,000
Estate planning is creating a clear, comprehensive plan for the transfer of your assets, after your death, to the people or organizations you love.
Assets include real estate, vehicles, personal property; brokerage, bank, insurance and retirement accounts; business interests, and more. Whether you are married with children or single with no dependents, a trust and will ensures that you, not the state, get to choose what happens to your assets.
- Estate planning also includes instructions for your own care should you become incapacitated. That means the creation of a living will/ advance health care directive.
- 18% of people don’t even know what an advanced heath care directive is!¹
- Familial conflicts
- 35% of adults in the U.S. say themselves or someone they know experienced familial conflict because an estate plan or will was not put in place.²
- Dying intestate (without a will) often extends the probate process.
- Probate expenses can cost up to 10% of an estate under the best of circ*mstances and can take from a few months to several years.³
- Famous People Who Died Without a Will. You’re in for a surprise.
- Parents should definitely have an estate plan to determine who would care for their children if the unthinkable happens. Otherwise, the state will decide on a guardian.
- 34% of people started estate planning due to the birth of a child.°
- 52% of Americans 55 and over say dying without an estate plan would be “irresponsible,” 22% say it would be “inconsiderate,” and 14% say it would be “ignorant.”°°
- Include a guardian for your donors’ furry friends.
- 77% of pet owners designate a guardian for Fido or Fifi.°
- The Great Wealth Transfer is here.
- Over the next 30 years we will see American retirees pass more than $36 trillion on to their families, friends, nonprofits, and additional beneficiaries.†
- When you create an estate plan, you need to communicate with whomever you would like to be the executor, so they’re not handed a surprise at your passing.
- Only 46% of will executors were even aware of their role in a will!†
- Estate planning documents must be kept in a secure but easily accessible place, and your family should know where that is.
- Over 52% of people don’t know where mom and dad stored their estate planning documents.¹
United Kingdom
Here’s clear proof from the UK that planned giving works. Now, if only U.S. nonprofits (and donors) would jump on the bandwagon!
- A 2023 report from Legacy Foresight found that planned giving is one of the largest sources of income for UK charities, raising £4 billion (around $5 billion US) annually.
The 2023 Legacy Giving Consumer Benchmark Study of 2,000 annual donors 40 and older dug deeper:
- 64 percent of annual donors reported having created a will. That number has been incrementally increasing since 2021.
- 31 percent of those with a will included a charitable planned gift.
- 29 percent of donors added a planned gift when making amendments to an existing will.
- More than 21 percent of annual donors age 40 and older included a planned gift in a will.
- 37 percent of annual donors in their 40s and 50s included a planned gift in their will.
- 27 percent of those aged over 60 included a planned gift in their will.
- 64 percent of those who included a legacy gift in their will did not let charities know about the gift; out of those, 47 percent said it never even occurred to them to let the charity know about the gift.
- 63 percent of annual donors said the biggest barrier to a planned gift is a desire to leave everything to family or friends.
35% of adults in the U.S. say they or someone they know experienced familial conflict because an estate plan or will was not put in place.²
Estate Planning by Age and Race
From Caring.com and AARP:
- 24% of 18- to 34-year-olds have a will.
- 27% of 25- to 54-year-olds have a will.
- 45% of people over the age of 55 have a will.
- 81% of people over the age of 72 have a will.
- Research shows that wealth, wage and financial literacy gaps mean fewer BIPOC individuals take the time and money for estate planning. A 2022 study show that BIPOC individuals are also 14% less likely to have an estate plan than non-BIPOC individuals.
Caring.com:
- 29% of Black Americans have a will or estate planning document—a 12% increase from 2020.
- 27% of Hispanic adults have a will.
- 35% of white adults have a will.
Estate Planning by Socioeconomic Status
From Caring.Com:
- 63% of people who make more than $80,000 per year cite procrastination as the primary reason for putting off estate planning.
- 42% of people who earn between $40,000 and $80,000 annually say they don’t have time to write a will, and 32% think they don’t have enough assets to leave behind.
- 20% of people who earn less than $40,000 per year say that they don’t have enough assets to leave, while 11% believe estate planning is too expensive.
Related
- 30 Estate Planning Documents to Put In Place Before You Die
- 7 Estate Planning Must Have Tools (you and your donors should be familiar with)
- Educate Your Donors
- Anatomy of a Bequest
- Estate Planning Guide
Fun Stuff
- Shortest will: “All to son.”
- Second shortest will: “All to wife.” (January of 1967, Herr Karl Hausch)
- Largest inheritance to a pet: $80 million (1991, Carlotta Leibenstein)
- Oldest Power of Attorney: 561 BC, Mesopotamia
- Longest will: 1066 pages (Frederica Evelyn Stilwell Cook, British)
- Famous people who died without a will: Abraham Lincoln, Picasso, Martin Luther King and 27 others.
Interesting Stuff
- 89% of Cryptocurrency Investors worry about dying with their assets
- 75% of Estate Planners noted their clients had faced challenges or uncertainty in recovering and transferring digital assets
- 70% of Americans think that their private online communications and photos should remain private after they die
- 34% of Americans only receive online account statements††
¹Cambridge Trust²WealthCounsel³LegalZoom°Trust & Will°°Age Wave/Merrill†SeniorLiving.org
Bequest Intentions and Race — PDF Download (Jennifer Lehman, JD, PhD & Russell James, JD, PhD, CFP) †† bequest.com
Join the top 1% today. We see things through a different lens — and soon, you will, too.
Estate Planning Guide
Over 90% of charitable bequests come via wills. Distribute this booklet at legacy events, and have it as a download on your bequests pages online.
The Future of Bequests: Online Will Planning
Online will planners are everywhere, and savvy nonprofits that make the most of them are receiving an astonishing number of bequests.
I am so grateful for our relationship. You are an industry leader and am thankful that our mission benefits from your knowledge and expertise.
Jessica Chapman Director of Planned Giving, ALS National
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Gretchen M. LaRock Planned Giving Program Manager, Roswell Park Alliance Foundation
You help us make a difference in the world.
Director of Planned Giving, ALS National President/CEO, Africa University
Fantastic Group!
Tom Ferro Christian Brothers Academy
The team at PlannedGiving.com are consummate professionals who work diligently to help make non-profits better. We are honored to be partnering with them.
Paul Hurd / Chief Development Officer, United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley
The people at PlannedGiving.com have made it possible for our small development shop to be able to run a planned giving program that dovetails with all our other giving objectives. They make it simple to manage and maintain.
Lynn Brynes / Leadership & Planned Giving Officer, The Bryn Mawr School
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Kim Intino / Director of Planned Giving, Physicians for Responsible medicine
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Casey Saunders, CFRE / Associate Director of Planned Giving at The ALS Association
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Ted Reese / Director of Development, Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra
I am grateful to have such an experienced group on my side. We can accomplish our work in large part to what they can offer us.
Matt Sleezer / Planned Giving, Rochester Regional Health Foundations
PlannedGiving.com makes it easy for us to offer robust and interactive Planned Giving information with website pages that integrate seamlessly with the look and feel of our site.
Barbara S. Khalouf, Director of Development, Access Living
I am able to get the structure I need, design , print and mail with just a little bit of work on my end. So I think this is a great place for NGOs who want to have a Planned Giving program but not a dedicated staff person!
Jeri Howland / Director of Philanthropy , The Climate Center
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Gary Bukowski / Sarah Reed Children's Center
This group does an excellent job. They're always coming up with new and better ways to promote planned giving and they're always helpful.
Barry Tomlinson / Director of Development, Elim Park Baptist Home, Inc
We have had the pleasure of working with PlannedGiving.com for many years and they have been a most valued resource in providing timely content for the benefit of our donor base.
Michael Freker / Director of Planned Giving, Diocese of Pittsburgh
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Billy Jo Jayne / Senior Director of Alumni Relations and Development, Keuka College
The team at PlannedGiving.com is very knowledgeable and responsive. With access to leaders in the area of planned and legacy giving, PlannedGiving.com is my go-to resource for information and ideas.
Josefa Bethea-Wall / Planned Giving, Africa University
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Sharon Macrina Ross / Director of Institutional Advancement, St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary
I have found PlannedGiving.com to be the perfect partner for our organization. Their team has succeeded in improving our online presence and increase and improve cultivation and outreach by mail. They are all great to work with. Responsive, knowledgeable, professional.
Peter Deccy / Senior Director Membership & Strategic Giving , Peace Action Education Fund
Great content for our website — really clear, attractive, and useful. I just downloaded of a brochure that we'll offer at an upcoming event and use at donor visits. It was easy to customize and looks great. Staff and leadership are all extremely knowledgeable and helpful.
Wendy Relation / Director of Development, Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth
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Seth Lehr / Senior Director Development & Major Gifts, Peace Action Education Fund
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Cheri Comasco / Director Of Development, Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra
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Debra Wright / Gift Planning Administrative Coordinator, Smith College
The people at PlannedGiving.com made it possible for our small development shop to run a planned giving program that dovetails with all our other giving objectives. They make it simple to manage and maintain.
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Lynda McMillen / Director of Development, Sunnyside Communities
Stock and IRA distributions have gone quite well! And we may have a million dollar bequest soon.
Jessica Chapman / Director of Planned Giving, ALS National
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