Hot Topics: Transfer of Wealth

Transfer of Wealth Research

Kansas community foundations are leading an effort to ensure that the state’s transfer of wealth is preserved and invested in communities across Kansas.

Transfer of Wealth Research conducted by WSU for KACF indicates:

$79 billion will be transferred from one generation to the next in the state of Kansas by 2020.
$3.9 billion or 5 percent could be preserved in community foundation endowments.
$598 billion will be transferred in the state within the next 50 years.

Transfer of Wealth Overview

Following the Great Depression and World War II, the United States entered a golden age of business growth and personal prosperity. Americans have created, invested and multiplied unprecedented wealth. Over the next 50 years, this capital – a conservative estimate of $41 trillion nationwide – will change hands.

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Research Overview

The Kansas Association of Community Foundations collaborated with the Kansas Health Foundation to analyze the transfer of wealth data for the purpose of enhancing statewide philanthropic giving. The Center for Economic Development and Business Research at Wichita State University carried out the study in 2007 and updated it in 2012, estimating future intergenerational wealth transfer for each county in Kansas. A model initially created by Boston College was used to determine a value for total wealth in Kansas.

For more detailed information about the Transfer of Wealth Updated Research, please contact Jeremy Hill jeremy.hill@wichita.edu at the Center for Economic Development and Business Research.

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What is Transfer of Wealth?

It is an estimate of the household estate wealth transferred from the current generation to the next. Researchers at Boston College conservatively estimated a $41 trillion transfer of wealth (TOW) in America from 2000 to 2050. The estimation of TOW is considered a possible future scenario for communities to consider; it is not a prediction or an absolute number about the future.

How Can Kansas Communities Benefit

Transfer of Wealth figures present an opportunity to all Kansas communities for local charitable giving. Generally, the TOW opportunity is greatest in larger urban communities. But even the smallest community has an opportunity to enhance its community foundation endowment to support local nonprofit agencies and community needs.

Consider Demographics

Counties with aging populations will find the transfer of wealth is expected to peak and then start to decline within the 50-year time span. This is a call to action before the opportunity decreases over time.