{"id":846837,"date":"2026-09-13T22:50:20","date_gmt":"2026-09-13T22:50:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/846837\/"},"modified":"2026-09-13T22:50:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-13T22:50:20","slug":"my-brothers-35-and-says-our-parents-inheritance-is-his-whole-retirement-plan-how-can-i-talk-some-sense-into-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/846837\/","title":{"rendered":"My brother’s 35 and says our parents’ inheritance is his whole retirement plan. How can I talk some sense into him?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/a> africaimages\/Envato <\/p>\n

An estimated 20% of U.S. adults<\/a> expect to receive an inheritance from their loved ones, and more than half of those expecting to become heirs describe their future inheritance as “critical” or “highly critical” to their long-term financial security. <\/p>\n

Since 31% of U.S. adults anticipate leaving an inheritance, some of those individuals who believe they will inherit may find their expectations are met. However, this won’t happen for everyone. That can be a problem when someone is counting on an influx of cash that never comes. <\/p>\n

Must Read <\/p>\n

Let’s say, for example, that Rodney is 35 years old and is counting on his parents to leave him a large sum. He’s told his sister Josephine that he’s not saving for retirement because he’s confident his inheritance will be enough. <\/p>\n

However, Josephine is concerned, and rightly so. Now, she’s wondering what she can do to convince Rodney to see sense and start shoring up his own future instead of sitting around waiting for Mom and Dad to die. And she’s right to worry, as the experts are on her side. <\/p>\n

You can’t count on an inheritance to come <\/p>\n

Rodney’s first big problem is that he’s putting all his eggs in one basket, and there’s no guarantee that betting on Mom and Dad to provide an inheritance will pan out. <\/p>\n

“I’ve seen many situations where parents leave less than the children expected, or set up a trust directing everything to charity and nothing to the kids,” Adam Spiegelman, founder and wealth advisor at Spiegelman Wealth Management, told Moneywise. <\/p>\n

“A client I work with is giving their entire estate away to charity, and their adult children, who are in their fifties, have no idea. That’s Mom and Dad’s right and privilege, but it illustrates the point: you can’t count on anything,” Spiegelman said. <\/p>\n

Rodney’s parents may decide not to give him the money, or something outside their control may happen. For example, around 7 in 10 people turning 65<\/a> will need long-term care at some point during their lives, which can cost upwards of $100,000 per year<\/a>. Rodney’s parents may be forced to spend their money on a nursing home before he inherits a dime, even if they promised he’d be getting the cash. <\/p>\n

Story Continues <\/p>\n

Josephine should point out this risk to Rodney and warn him that if you expect an inheritance and get nothing, it may be too late to start saving for retirement. And since Social Security replaces just 40% of pre-retirement income<\/a>, he may struggle to cover the basics without added savings. <\/p>\n

Read More: Vanguard reveals what’s coming for U.S. stocks \u2014 and it could be bad news for this group of investors<\/a> <\/p>\n

An inheritance may come too late <\/p>\n

Even if Rodney’s parents do decide to give him money, it may come well after his own retirement date. Many people live well into their 80s and 90s<\/a> now, and lifespans may get longer due to medical advances prompted by AI. <\/p>\n

If Rodney wants to retire at 62, the earliest age when Social Security retirement benefits become available<\/a>, his parents may still be in their late 80s or early 90s, depending on how old they were when he was born. The last thing he wants is to be stuck waiting for his parents to die in order to be able to retire. <\/p>\n

“The client needs this money for retirement. The only way the client receives this money is if their father passes away, which is something they obviously do not want,” Gerry Keene, a financial advisor for over 20 years, told Moneywise. Keene also warned that the longer Rodney’s parents live, the greater the chance they’ll need long-term care. <\/p>\n

The inherited funds may not be enough <\/p>\n

Finally, Rodney may find that the inherited funds his parents provide may not be enough for a secure retirement. <\/p>\n

“Their estate plan might not be what you expect,” Rachael Burns, a financial planner at True Worth Financial Planning, told Moneywise. “You could end up sharing your inheritance with family members you didn’t realize were included, or your loved one could change their estate plan without your knowledge.” <\/p>\n

Burns also warned that “people also frequently overestimate how much wealth a loved one actually has. It is very difficult to judge someone’s financial situation based on their lifestyle or outward appearance. And even if you know what they have today, their financial situation can change dramatically.” <\/p>\n

Josephine needs to make sure Rodney understands these real risks so he doesn’t make a decision he seriously regrets. But while she can urge him to face reality and even point to data on lengthening lifespans and the costs of long-term care, Rodney ultimately must make the responsible decision and start investing, and no one can force him to make that choice. <\/p>\n

What To Read Next <\/p>\n

Join 250,000+ readers and get Moneywise’s best stories and exclusive interviews first \u2014 clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now<\/a>. <\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on Moneywise.com<\/a> under the title: My brother’s 35 and says our parents’ inheritance is his whole retirement plan. How can I talk some sense into him?<\/a> <\/p>\n

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"africaimages\/Envato An estimated 20% of U.S. adults expect to receive an inheritance from their loved ones, and more…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":846838,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[28,2065,129120,13952,147,530,1666,733],"class_list":["post-846837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-business","tag-inheritance","tag-moneywise","tag-parents","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance","tag-retirement","tag-social-security"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=846837"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846837\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/846838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=846837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=846837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=846837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}