From the article:

New research from Visa Business and Economic Insights finds that $36 trillion in baby boomer wealth will pass to Gen X and millennial heirs over the next 20 years after subtracting liabilities, excluding the top 1 percent of households (the outliers in how they spend their wealth), and accounting for retirement spending, charitable bequests, taxes and fees. That is a little over one‑third of the $93 trillion headline figure, and by our estimate the amount spent will be smaller still at $8 trillion,* because most households receiving an inheritance are already affluent and likely to save or invest much of what they receive. Even so, that roughly $8 trillion still has meaningful implications at the spending‑category level, especially in housing and travel, where support is already arriving through down‑payment assistance, skip‑generation vacations and similar wealth transfers happening now rather than far off in the future.

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We started with $93 trillion in assets, and after subtracting liabilities we’re left with $88 trillion. This is still a substantial amount to be sure, but nearly one-third of this is held by the top 1 percent of households—funding yachts and private jets and destined largely for charitable foundations. Excluding them leaves $60 trillion in aggregate baby boomer wealth and gives a cleaner read of the transfer for the typical household and the potential lift to spending. But while excluding the top 1 percent makes the wealth estimate more realistic, it does not make the transfer democratic. The chart below shows that most remaining wealth ($44 trillion) is still held by affluent boomers in the top 90 to 99 percent of households. In contrast, the bottom 90 percent of boomer households hold just $16 trillion.

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Affluent and lower-wealth boomers face very different retirement realities. We previously explored how income constraints and the need for long-term planning will limit retiree spending. But by extension those income constraints will also limit the wealth they can pass on. Households in the bottom 90 percent—particularly those in the bottom 50 percent—will need to draw down a much larger share of their nest egg to pay for housing, food, healthcare, prescription drugs and other essentials. This reality leaves less room for portfolio growth over time. By contrast, affluent boomers can afford lower withdrawal rates in retirement, allowing their assets to keep compounding even as they spend, and they are more likely to allocate part of their estates to charitable bequests. Near the very top, some households face meaningful estate and income tax exposure on their wealth. After accounting for these drawdown patterns, charitable giving and taxes, we estimate that $36 trillion will pass to younger generations over the next 20 years, equivalent to roughly $515,000 per inheriting household. But this is far from a broad redistribution of wealth: these transfers will be highly uneven, reinforcing pockets of affluence and quietly shaping who benefits most—and how much of this windfall ultimately shows up in spending rather than savings.

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With most wealth transfers coming from affluent households, the heirs receiving them are disproportionately likely to be affluent as well. That reflects a broader intergenerational pattern: wealth, education, housing access, family support and inheritance expectations often reinforce one another across families. Our analysis finds that nearly 75 percent of those benefiting from the wealth transfer already have a higher net worth (see figure below).

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These affluent heirs are already wealthy and thus have a lower propensity to spend compared to less affluent households. That means most of the money will be added to their existing wealth through savings, investments or property. This is why the bulk of the $36 trillion great wealth transfer translates into a much smaller $8 trillion lift to consumer spending (see figure below). The $28 trillion likely to be saved or invested creates a major opportunity for banks, wealth managers, fintechs and other financial providers over the next two decades. While an $8 trillion spending lift is modest by comparison, it will still boost overall consumption. And as we will show, how that $8 trillion is already being deployed reveals a generational shift in the way inheritances are spent and which sectors are poised to benefit the most.

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The great wealth transfer is not just a future event. It is already showing up in how families spend today, especially on housing and experiences. Among millennial homeowners, 1 in 4 received down payment assistance from their parents, and 26 percent said they would not have been able to buy their current home when they did without that help.³ For many, this support made it possible to qualify for a mortgage, lower their monthly payments or afford a more expensive home. It also reflects a broader shift among older generations toward giving while living. Rather than waiting to pass down inheritances later, many boomers are using their wealth to help their children clear major financial hurdles now, when the support will have the greatest impact.

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While they’re often discussed through the lens of strain, Gen X and millennials are entering the great wealth transfer from a stronger wealth position than boomers had at the same age. The figure below shows inflation-adjusted net worth per person across generations at comparable ages. Gen X and millennials have built more wealth than boomers did at the same age, largely due to several structural advantages. They’ve had earlier access to 401(k)s—often with automatic enrollment—and to modern, low-cost digital investing apps, enabling earlier years of compounding. Additionally, some benefited from historically low mortgage rates, driving significant home equity gains. That stronger starting point matters because inherited wealth is unlikely to land in the same way across households. For some, it will reinforce already strong balance sheets; for others, it will create the financial room to make purchases that have been delayed or out of reach.

The biggest shares are expected to go to households that are already near the top of the wealth distribution. For those heirs, an inheritance is more likely to be folded into investment accounts, retirement savings, trusts or other long-term assets than spent right away. But heirs outside the top wealth tiers are expected to receive smaller amounts overall and are more likely to put that money to work quickly in the real economy, whether by buying a home, paying down debt, renovating, replacing a car, traveling or helping their own children. That distinction is central to understanding the inheritance lift. The transfer will not create an even spending boost across all households. Instead, it will likely create a large savings and investment effect among wealthier heirs, alongside a more visible spending effect among households where an inheritance can meaningfully change near-term choices. For businesses, the opportunity is not only in the size of the transfer, but in identifying where inherited dollars can unlock purchases consumers already want or need to make.