Claire Francis

The research of 4,000 40-year-old millennials and their parents reveals disparities when it comes to financially planning.

Nearly all parents surveyed (99%) intend on passing an inheritance onto their children or grandchildren, with almost two in five (37%) anticipating gifting more money this year to help their children with the rising cost of living.

However, a third (32%) of adult children would rather their parents kept it all to themselves, to support a comfortable retirement.

The desire from each generation to financially support the other comes against the backdrop of financial challenges on two fronts: continued market volatility impacting pension pots and property prices on the one hand; and rising living costs on the other.

This makes it harder to support bigger financial commitments – of those older generation parents that are worried about funding their whole retirement, over a third (36%) are specifically concerned about funding the cost of care.

Juggling financial priorities makes communication and forward planning even more vital, but this does not always happen. Two in five (38%) of parents admit to not speaking to their children about their inheritance plans, and one in four have not developed a plan to protect their child’s inheritance should their child go through a difficult divorce.

With cash required to go further than ever before, almost a third (31%) of the parents of millennials are worried about supporting their own immediate living costs, and one in five (19%) are considering downsizing.

Clare Francis, director of savings and investments at Barclays Wealth, said: “Many people want to do what they can to ensure they maximise the amount they leave to their family and minimise inheritance tax, but working out how much you can afford to give away during your lifetime isn’t easy.

“With finances being stretched in all directions, it can be incredibly stressful if you want to support your children in the short-term, while making sure you don’t find yourself struggling further down the line.

“Even though most children would be very grateful if their parents are able to pass on some inheritance while they’re still alive, they wouldn’t want them to have money worries in the future as a result.

“This is why it’s not only important to plan, but also to include your family in any conversations – it can make such a difference and help remove some of the pressure many parents feel when thinking about how and when they’ll pass on their wealth.”