Retired more likely to bequeath than use wealth - IFS research

Patterns may change in future

Julian Marr
clock • 3 min read

Older people do not draw on their wealth much during retirement, according to new research, indicating most of their assets - whether held in property or in financial securities - will be bequeathed to later generations.

According to The use of wealth in retirement - a set of reports published today and funded by the IFS Retirement Savings Consortium and the Economic and Social Research Council - older people in England, on average, hold a lot of wealth. Among those aged 55 to 64, for example, median housing wealth is £185,000 and median other wealth (excluding pensions) is around £33,000. The research found primary housing was the largest component of (non-pension) wealth held, with four-fifths (80%) of over-50s being home owners. "On current trends, the majority of home owners at age 50 would not be ex...

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