● Covered by 1 source · 1 reportLow impact1 neutral
Visa Research Estimates $36 Trillion in Boomer Wealth to Transfer to Heirs
Key points
- Baby boomers hold at least $93 trillion in assets.
- Visa research estimates $36 trillion will transfer to heirs over 20 years.
- Only $8 trillion of the transferred wealth is expected to be spent.
- Inherited wealth will primarily impact housing and travel spending.
The Scope of the Wealth Transfer
The "great wealth transfer" is often cited with figures as high as $110-$124 trillion. However, new research from Visa Business and Economic Insights provides a more conservative estimate. Baby boomers currently possess at least $93 trillion in assets, which is more than three times the U.S. GDP in 2025 and exceeds the combined wealth of Gen X and millennials.
Adjusted Transfer Estimates
Visa's research indicates that approximately $36 trillion of this boomer wealth will actually pass to Gen X and millennial heirs over the next 20 years. This adjusted figure accounts for various deductions, including liabilities, retirement spending, charitable bequests, taxes, and fees. The top 1% of households, which exhibit different spending patterns, were also excluded from this calculation.
Projected Spending Impact
Despite the substantial transfer, the study estimates that only about $8 trillion of the inherited wealth will be spent. This is largely due to the fact that most households receiving an inheritance are already affluent and tend to save or invest a significant portion of what they receive. Even so, this $8 trillion is expected to have meaningful implications for specific spending categories.
Key Spending Categories Affected
The primary sectors expected to see an impact from this spending are housing and travel. Support in these areas is already manifesting through initiatives like down-payment assistance and skip-generation vacations, indicating that some wealth transfers are occurring now rather than solely in the distant future.
✨ This summary was generated by AI from the outlets' reporting listed below. It is not independently verified and may contain errors — check the original sources. How BrevFeed works →
The daily brief
One email each morning: the day's tech stories, clustered across outlets and summarized. No account needed.
One email a day. Unsubscribe in one click, any time.
Today's brief
Spend a few minutes, get the whole day. Every topic's top stories in one hands-free rundown — listen, watch, or read the transcript.
▶ Play today's brief
New every morning, and the back catalogue is archived by date.
Reporting from
New research from Visa Business and Economic Insights projects that $36 trillion of baby boomer wealth will transfer to Gen X and millennial heirs over the next two decades. This figure is significantly lower than the widely cited $93 trillion in boomer assets, as it accounts for liabilities, retirement spending, taxes, and charitable bequests, and excludes the top 1% of households. The study estimates that only $8 trillion of this transferred wealth will be spent, primarily impacting housing and travel sectors, because most recipients are already affluent and likely to save or invest the inheritance.