Transfer Of Wealth
In 1999, a study was completed at Boston College titled “Millionaires in the Millennium.” Researchers Paul G. Schervish and John J. Havens estimated that $41 trillion will transfer from one generation to the next in the U.S. in the next 50 years.
In 2001, using some of the Boston College information and some of its own methodology, the Nebraska Community Foundation completed an analysis of both the magnitude and the peak of the transfer of intergenerational wealth in Nebraska for each of its 93 counties.
Based on those findings, NCF estimated that in rural Nebraska (750,000 citizens), $94 billion will transfer between generations during the first half of this century.
Timing is critical, with 86 of 93 counties experiencing their peak years of transfer on or before 2039 and 24 very rural counties on or before 2014. By comparison, the peak transfer for the U.S. as a whole will not occur until some time after 2050, if ever, as each year the country as a whole continues to become more populous and wealthier.
The transfer of wealth is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for building community endowments and hometowns. Local leaders are developing strategies to retain at least five percent of the intergenerational wealth transfer by encouraging carefully planned gifts and building endowments. The five percent goal has become a powerful tool and a strong case statement for developing local investment of philanthropic resources to sustain rural communities.
While the transfer of wealth analysis helps communities see the potential wealth in their area, it is only one piece of a “both/and” strategy. Communities must harness and reinvest intergenerational wealth as a long-term strategy, as well as implement a fundraising strategy focused on immediate capitalization.
Even if a modest percentage of this estimated transfer was given back to the communities where it was accumulated, the resulting $5 billion gifted to build community endowments could be transformational for many of Nebraska’s hometowns.
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Imperial Community Foundation
In 2006 the Robert and Jeanette Hunt Donor-Advised Fund, the family foundation of the founders of Great Plains Communications in Nebraska, offered up to ten $50,000 challenge grants to communities served by the company.
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