Since the rich can't take it with them, they're going to spend it

Fifteen or so years ago, a bumper sticker started appearing, particularly on Winnebagos and other motor homes: "We're Spending Our Children's Inheritance." Good for a chuckle or two. But some people apparently mean it. Since they can't take it with them, they plan to spend it now. According to a new poll by US Trust:

A US Trust survey of 457 high-net-wealth individuals released Tuesday found 51 percent said it is not important to leave their kids an inheritance, even though their children's success is an important measure of their own success.

"These are mainly self-made people," 50 percent or whom said they paid a price in personal relationships and possibly their own health when they made their wealth, US Trust President Keith Banks told CNBC. So they think "I?m going to get a return on that investment for myself, number 1, and maybe my children down the road."

Among the study's other findings: 75 percent said their wealth is the result of their own focus and hard work, 52 percent have not fully disclosed their wealth to their children and 55 percent intend to actively volunteer after retirement.

In fact, Banks said, many of those surveyed expect to use their wealth to maintain their current lifestyle for 20 to 30 years after retirement.

OK, it's not exactly a random sample. But it does offer another example of F. Scott Fitzgerald's maxim, which seems to boil down to something pretty simple: selfishness.

Source: http://feeds.dailykos.com/~r/dailykos/index/~3/70_S72N6Q_8/-Since-the-rich-cant-take-it-with-them,-theyre-going-to-spend-it

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