Preparing affluent investors for retirement

More than half of affluent investors (57%) feel it’s important to leave an inheritance. Nearly three-fourths (71%) of this group have proactively taken the necessary steps to transfer their wealth to beneficiaries. Just more than one in five respondents (21%) reported that they will not have the ability to leave an inheritance at all because they expect to need all their assets to live on during their retirement years. And while a quarter of affluent investors report being uncomfortable talking to their family about their estate plan, another quarter said they don’t fully understand the complexity of transferring their assets to the next generation after their demise.

“People who have worked hard to become affluent said it’s important to them to transfer their wealth to their heirs, so it’s essential that their investment plan include preparations to do that in an orderly way,” said Joe Nadreau, head of Innovation and Strategy at Wells Fargo Advisors in statement.

Although investment tools and technologies play an important role in helping investors monitor and manage investments, the Wells Fargo survey found that affluent investors generally wouldn’t feel comfortable handing off their money management to an automated investment advisory service, or robo-advisor. This group would, however, like to see their financial advisor leverage automated investment tools to determine an optimal investment mix. About two-thirds (66%) of affluent investors said they’d be interested in using technology to manage investments – but only with the help of an actual human.

“While investors recognize that technological tools are important and they’re willing to embrace them, an advisor’s ability to relate to a client on a human level adds a dimension that online tools alone can’t match,” Nadreau said.