Anonymous
Post 01/09/2026 16:48     Subject: Re:If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
I’m 40 and my parents are mid 70s. I, along with my siblings could someday inherit maybe $15m each. They have funded 529 plans and are generous with Christmas gifts. I don’t think about the inheritance in our planning as I want them to live forever. We are doing fine on our own and that’s the way we want it.
Anonymous
Post 01/09/2026 10:58     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
If I knew I'd get 6million eventually - yes absolutely things would be different. I'm in no rush at all whatsoever to inherit anything but a 6million backstop is pretty amazing and I'd retire by summer.
Anonymous
Post 01/09/2026 10:04     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
I think we’ll inherit about 3mil, split between myself and my kids. I’ve been given the documents about how it should be split, but honestly haven’t looked.

My parents are mid80s but still very healthy, so I expect they will be here at least another 10 years, and by then we’ll be close to retirement.

It won’t affect our lives really at all, but maybe it has made us take more risks? Knowing we won’t have to support them in their waning years?

I worry about my kids getting too much money at a young age and not keeping heads on their shoulders. We inherited from my grandparents, but it was just enough to help with house buying, and I was almost 30. I should probably look at how my parents structured things for my kids, lol
Anonymous
Post 01/09/2026 08:11     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I might spend more on vacations or other family events. Your kids will grow up and not be as interested in spending time with you. If you can spend some $$ now, do it.


This or the kids won’t be able to spend time with you. Once they high high school, if they play a sport, vacation opportunities are very limited. We take as much as we can.


this is so damn true. We’ve taken a vacation to Hawaii and one kid was left behind and this summer we are going to Germany and a kid will be left behind. It sucks because they are finally fun to travel with but now have major commitments,

However we have an inheritance and it has zero bearing on our financial decisions If we get it as stated it will be a bonus. However we aren’t cheap like the OP. We have a healthy savings and diversified investments, but take nice vacations; eat good food and would never at this point in our lives buy used cars.
Anonymous
Post 01/09/2026 08:05     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:We live nicely in DC area with decent HHI to support our lives however I’m cheap and we don’t have new cars or fancy vacations. I know that I will inherit at least $6M at some point. Parents in late 70’s. Would you do things differently like splurge on vacations?


This is exactly my DH and his parents. His inheritance never entered our mind and isn’t even remotely a part of our financial plan. His parents could live until they are 100. They could get swindled out of their money via a scam. That is not our money and we don’t operate as if it is.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 22:44     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
[quote=Anonymous]We live nicely in DC area with decent HHI to support our lives however I’m cheap and we don’t have new cars or fancy vacations. I know that I will inherit at least $6M at some point. Parents in late 70’s. Would you do things differently like splurge on vacations? [/quote]i

Any inheritance is speculative, even if you’ve been told about it explicitly.

Think of the $6M as legacy money. As money you can give to your children as adults to help them. You can’t count on it as a buffer if you are forced into early retirement or in the case your income drops due to any number of hypotheticals. You can’t count on it if you don’t fund 529s.

If your HHI covers your expenses, retirement savings, 529 savings, emergency fund, and any additional brokerage contributions you feel are necessary for wealth creation: go to Europe.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 21:50     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:i supported my parents through the last 25 years of their life; that was mostly 30k a year until the last several years which turned into more like $200k a year with memory care.

there is currently a generational trust in my spouses family but they are likely to live at least another 25 years. i view the actual inheritance to be the fact that we won't have to monetarily support them in old age. the primary lifestyle change we made is that we did decide to have children; i probably would not have done IVF if there had been any danger of needing to support the previous generation for significant years.

they have set up nice 529s for our children, and they buy the plane tickets for us to visit; those are the primary extent of our planning reliance on their money. (though we still contribute what our state allows for deductions to another 529). spouses tax-advantaged retirement funds are a little light for their age, which likely reflects some unconscious reliance on inheritance but their overall portfolio is fine. i'm contributing the max i can to mine including catch-up.

in short, my perspective is that there is no windfall coming, and i live my life accordingly. our newest car is almost 20 years old and that's completely fine. we have a decent UMC life, and i'm delighted to hopefully have decades where they can enjoy their grandchildren.


$200k a year on memory care is criminal and unnecessary. If this were the going rate, then think of how many people would work as memory care providers 24-7. No college education necessary but you live with someone and they pay you $200k a year. The market for this is incredibly small. Many people paying amounts like this are big spenders their entire life, or taken for a wild ride.

The average length of LTC is 2-4 years. During this time, your money should be growing and if you’re a widow then you should not have any other expenses since you’re not living at home.

I do feel bad for the elderly who spend large portions of their net worth on care, when it truly isn’t necessary. The large corporations providing care aren’t necessarily providing better care as their employees are often paid very little or minimum wage.



um, $8200 a month a bed for a shared room in memory care is INCREDIBLY CHEAP in this area. the medicaid nightmare their hospital originally transferred them into was more like $13,000 a month per bed.

for $200,000 a year my violent, non-compliant, non-verbal parents were taken care of, fed, bathed, dressed, medicated, and entertained to the best of the staff's ability 24 hours a day. in-home care was not possible; the house was not accessible, and had to be sold to fund their care. and yes, the staff are not paid very much and it's generally immigrants that are willing to do that backbreaking and heartbreaking labor.

fortunately yes, it was only for about 4 years.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 20:47     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:You shouldn’t change anything. Act as if you won’t get it. 6 million isn’t enough to live on anymore, so don’t get ahead of your self planning on a possible inheritance.


6m is very conservatively 200k+ per year. You can easily live on that.


I couldn’t but good for you.


+1

I "could" but that is not how I want to live my life at 55+. So we have planned for and have much more so we can live how we want in retirement.


How much do you plan to spend each year?
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 19:24     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:i supported my parents through the last 25 years of their life; that was mostly 30k a year until the last several years which turned into more like $200k a year with memory care.

there is currently a generational trust in my spouses family but they are likely to live at least another 25 years. i view the actual inheritance to be the fact that we won't have to monetarily support them in old age. the primary lifestyle change we made is that we did decide to have children; i probably would not have done IVF if there had been any danger of needing to support the previous generation for significant years.

they have set up nice 529s for our children, and they buy the plane tickets for us to visit; those are the primary extent of our planning reliance on their money. (though we still contribute what our state allows for deductions to another 529). spouses tax-advantaged retirement funds are a little light for their age, which likely reflects some unconscious reliance on inheritance but their overall portfolio is fine. i'm contributing the max i can to mine including catch-up.

in short, my perspective is that there is no windfall coming, and i live my life accordingly. our newest car is almost 20 years old and that's completely fine. we have a decent UMC life, and i'm delighted to hopefully have decades where they can enjoy their grandchildren.


$200k a year on memory care is criminal and unnecessary. If this were the going rate, then think of how many people would work as memory care providers 24-7. No college education necessary but you live with someone and they pay you $200k a year. The market for this is incredibly small. Many people paying amounts like this are big spenders their entire life, or taken for a wild ride.

The average length of LTC is 2-4 years. During this time, your money should be growing and if you’re a widow then you should not have any other expenses since you’re not living at home.

I do feel bad for the elderly who spend large portions of their net worth on care, when it truly isn’t necessary. The large corporations providing care aren’t necessarily providing better care as their employees are often paid very little or minimum wage.





100%. It’s true some places are charging $200K+ a year but this isn’t the norm and it’s 100% a choice. If you want the 4 Seasons of memory care, you’ll pay for it and get it.

It’s way overstated on here relative to prevalence.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 19:22     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:Do not plan for this. Mom dies, dad remarries, new wife takes all.


Bingo. Happened to me and my siblings in 2022. Thought my parents’ money was in a trust. My dad invaded the trust to support the new wife and act like a big deal in his small southern town.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 19:18     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Money is so much more useful when you are younger. We inherited some money a couple of years ago at the age of 50. Our kids were already in college/about to start college. We already owned a house etc.

We don’t really need this money as we had saved for college and retirement without knowing we would eventually inherit, and we don’t benefit from it like we would’ve when we were younger (we had some student loans, bought in a not great school district etc.).

I don’t have a direct answer for you but this experience has made us rethink how we can use the money to support our kids while they are in their 20s and 30s rather than just having them inherit it once they are settled and have less need for the money.


Very very true! This is why we are following the "die with nothing" mentality, and gifting away while we are alive. Our 20 something kids had college fully funded, and grad school (if/when they need it) as well. We start them out with a new car upon college graduation (think $35K+ vehicle, will last them at least 10 years), and we gift them $38K yearly (19K*2). So they can max their ROTH and 401Ks and save for a house downpayment. They know any future grandkids will have their education fully funded. They will be able to buy a home that is an easy commute to work for them (and their spouse) so they have a higher quality of life. They will be able to afford the home also in a good school district (or use private). Take away those worries and they are set for life, even if we don't give anything else (they will be getting much more). Because fact is $$$ when you are starting out is worth so much more than when you are 50-60+. It can change the trajectory of your life



Totally agree. We had friends whose parents would pay their annual country club membership every year (plus many other things). Such a nice quality of life thing.


As long as our adult kids continue to be motivated, responsible, contributing members of society (ie not doing drugs or something illegal), they will receive those benefits. We want to see their lives change when it matters and for our future grandkids. We want them to have a good quality to their lives. So far it's working, all 3 are highly motivated and doing well (2 have great jobs, one still in college). They appreciate all they have and it's fun to watch them grow up and enjoy life without the financial struggles we had at that age


This is our plan too. FIL has big $ but is waiting until we’re all also retired to pass anything down. Completely his right and perspective but we certainly won’t be doing things that way for our kids. Money matters most when you’re starting out and having to make tradeoffs. $ minimizes the tradeoffs so you can maximize your QOL and career.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 18:43     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Money is so much more useful when you are younger. We inherited some money a couple of years ago at the age of 50. Our kids were already in college/about to start college. We already owned a house etc.

We don’t really need this money as we had saved for college and retirement without knowing we would eventually inherit, and we don’t benefit from it like we would’ve when we were younger (we had some student loans, bought in a not great school district etc.).

I don’t have a direct answer for you but this experience has made us rethink how we can use the money to support our kids while they are in their 20s and 30s rather than just having them inherit it once they are settled and have less need for the money.


Very very true! This is why we are following the "die with nothing" mentality, and gifting away while we are alive. Our 20 something kids had college fully funded, and grad school (if/when they need it) as well. We start them out with a new car upon college graduation (think $35K+ vehicle, will last them at least 10 years), and we gift them $38K yearly (19K*2). So they can max their ROTH and 401Ks and save for a house downpayment. They know any future grandkids will have their education fully funded. They will be able to buy a home that is an easy commute to work for them (and their spouse) so they have a higher quality of life. They will be able to afford the home also in a good school district (or use private). Take away those worries and they are set for life, even if we don't give anything else (they will be getting much more). Because fact is $$$ when you are starting out is worth so much more than when you are 50-60+. It can change the trajectory of your life



Totally agree. We had friends whose parents would pay their annual country club membership every year (plus many other things). Such a nice quality of life thing.


As long as our adult kids continue to be motivated, responsible, contributing members of society (ie not doing drugs or something illegal), they will receive those benefits. We want to see their lives change when it matters and for our future grandkids. We want them to have a good quality to their lives. So far it's working, all 3 are highly motivated and doing well (2 have great jobs, one still in college). They appreciate all they have and it's fun to watch them grow up and enjoy life without the financial struggles we had at that age
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 18:42     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
I would quit my job and pursue my passion project.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 18:40     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:We live nicely in DC area with decent HHI to support our lives however I’m cheap and we don’t have new cars or fancy vacations. I know that I will inherit at least $6M at some point. Parents in late 70’s. Would you do things differently like splurge on vacations?


If I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, yes.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 18:39     Subject: If you knew you would inherit $6M, would you do things different?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:You shouldn’t change anything. Act as if you won’t get it. 6 million isn’t enough to live on anymore, so don’t get ahead of your self planning on a possible inheritance.


6m is very conservatively 200k+ per year. You can easily live on that.


Yeh in 1980


C’mon. With a paid off house you can easily live on $200k.

My elderly mother spends $75k a year and this includes home maintenance and decent international travel. She is able to do this because she has no mortgage, car payment or any sort of significant bills.

Her net worth grows significantly every year.


Property tax bills on my two homes is over $35K, so yeah I can't live the way I want on $200K/year.