I spent money
I just grew up being told it could help with college, emergencies, and whatever came up.
But I still basically manage it to the day even though I’m in my 30s. Obviously, it wasn’t something I could run out and spend as a toddler, so my parents managed it. There was also money added to that that came from the other side of my family, so I was never totally sure of the total I ended up with. He left some money to each of his children, and grandchildren, divided equally. I was only three when my maternal grandfather died. if you inherit the crown, throw your work phone in the trash and buy an island.) Heather Cooper, Washington D.C. (This advice is for medium-ish inheritances. It was totally worth it.Īfter all that, my advice is: If you come into an inheritance and were planning on a big change or needed to cover an expense and, spend it on that. But, I’ll remember what I did there for the rest of my life. Like, as soon as the money became available, I immediately flew to Japan and blew $10,000 on that trip. The one extravagant thing I did, however, was spend a good fifth of the money on a trip to Japan. One of those companies was Etsy, so obviously, I’m keeping the money invested in them for now. I also bought stocks using some of the money. Now I have a backyard, which in Brooklyn is just spectacular. I used it to move into a better apartment, kind of quickly because the apartment I was living in at the time left much to be desired. My brother, who is much more responsible with money than I am, used that to start paying for a new house. So, both my brother and I got about 50,000, staggered over a few years. My second inheritance (which was bigger than the first) came when my parents, who planned on leaving us money when they pass, decided to give it to us while they’re still alive. My parents are quite dedicated to running my finances - actuarial tables and the like - since I am really, really bad with money. My parents decided it would be best if they just paid my school loans with it and that’s what they did, so I never even saw it. The first one I received a few years ago, when my grandmother died, was about $5,000. However, since I’m bad with money, my parents managed two of them for me. With that in mind, we interview three people who inherited a large amount of money when they were in their 20s (or younger) about what they did with it. While it feels like inheritance is a topic only relevant to a tiny percentage of privileged people, it’s projected that 40% of millennials will actually get one someday. In a 2015 study of “financially distressed” people in Florida who had won the lottery, they found that within three to five years, the winners of big prizes had filed for bankruptcy. And I can’t speak for everyone, but I don’t know responsibly I’d handle that.įor those who aren’t great with money, receiving a sizable amount of it with no restrictions can get messy. We’re not, in any way, pitying people who have the luck of getting a chunk of money they didn’t work for - but it does feel like a lot to process. Sometimes, you barely know the person who thought of you specifically when they left you a chunk of money or their worldly possessions. But you’ve also likely lost someone close to you, which can make the gift bittersweet. For one, you’ve somewhat unexpectedly been graced with a financial come-up. Receiving inheritance money seems like it would involve a gumbo of emotions.