Generational Wealth

[Anonymous]

A few years ago my father told me and my two siblings about trusts that he and my mother had set up for us that at the time were worth over $30 million in total. Shocked? Yes! But, the trusts are some kind of inheritance trusts so hopefully it’s years before we ever see it. They are very generous with us and all of the grandchildren and we all have very good careers underway so in no way are we deprived by not having access now. I know we are blessed. I do view the trusts as generation wealth because my children will benefit from it (but no trust fund babies) and maybe my grandchildren.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm rather agnostic on the topic of raising inheritance taxes on the very rich. Yes, it's easy to look at the top 1% and think, my god, they have so much money. But then I look at the bottom 20 or 30% of society and wonder why they deserve the wealth transfer? Because many if not most don't. A lot of people at the bottom of society are leeches who never produce anything useful for society and just feed off the welfare state.

In reality, inheritance tax is a red herring concept, a feel-good policy which never, ever, raises anywhere near the amount of revenue it theoretically promises as the wealthy find ways around it or simply stop producing more wealth. And the argument that it's a double tax, taxing incomes and wealth that has already been taxed at least once, is a valid one. And there's no question it involves class jealousy.

If you really want to increase tax revenues on a significant scale to fund all your pet programs, you have to raise taxes across the middle classes. Not just the wealthy.

+1

Agreed that it is a Double tax. Most of us who are wealthy (in the 10-50M range) don't have ways to shelter the money as it came in. We paid taxes to fed and state on ALL of it (and PAID a ton of $$$ each year). It was income or LT/ST Cap Gains of stock options. That money is ours and it really is not fair to tax it again just because we die. So we will fully utilize all legal methods to ensure our kids don't pay 40-60% in estate taxes. Why wouldn't we?

Also agree that most who say "tax it again" are simply jealous of those who have that much. We got there thru hard work---years of long hours and lower paying jobs at smaller companies in the hopes that the options pan out. Eventually they did---but that doesn't happen for everyone.

Don’t kid yourself. A lot of it has to do with luck. You’re not that exceptional with your work ethic - many people work hard and long hours. You were lucky, that’s what others realize, and you don’t.

Luck can play a role along with hard work if you are in the right place at the right time. But for many high worth people they pursue high risk/high reward opportunities where they put their own money on the line. To do that you need some money, guts and a very supportive spouse.

+1

My spouse took lower paying jobs to work at smaller companies with the tradeoff of stock options. Took 10-20 years to pay off. Execs at smaller companies work their asses off, most years without bonuses and with low pay. There is nobody to "pawn the work off on" when there are only 100-200 people in the company. 80+ hour weeks for many years and lots of travel. Even now my spouse works 80hour+ weeks, often is up for 6am meetings (international team), and might finish day with a 9pm-11pm meeting (once again due to international team/customers), with a break between 6 and 9pm. Difficult to do that without a supportive spouse (once you have kids)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So by what most in this thread are saying, your typical biglaw partner would be what comes to mind when you hear the phrase generational wealth?

No

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So by what most in this thread are saying, your typical biglaw partner would be what comes to mind when you hear the phrase generational wealth?

No

Agree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So by what most in this thread are saying, your typical biglaw partner would be what comes to mind when you hear the phrase generational wealth?

No

Definitely not. Biglaw partners are often the lowest paid people in the room when among clients.