‘Are we rich?’ The question billionaire and millionaire parents dread, and what happens when they dodge it
Source: Fortune ·
Parents often hide the scale of family wealth, but it can leave heirs unprepared and spark conflict over philanthropy and succession
From the source
There’s a question wealthy parents dread, and it’s not coming from activists asking them about their tax returns. Jessica McGawley, a consultant who’s worked with high-net-worth families for nearly two decades, told Fortune that she has to explain to clients that their children are not “being greedy or rude” by suddenly asking “Are we rich?” after noticing their family has more than one house. “How a parent feels comfortable talking about sex and death is also how they feel comfortable with money,” she said. As the scions of wealthy families anticipate the $124 trillion Great Wealth Transfer—the sum Cerulli Associates projects will change hands in the U.S. through 2048—they’re often unprepared to handle their inheritance because their families haven’t talked with them about money and how to manage it. McGawley founded her firm Dallington to address this issue, based on her experience of parents having put together “a watertight paper document that explains everything” but failing to…