What Is the Great Wealth Transfer? Overview and Importance

By Kristi Waterworth – Updated Apr 30, 2025 at 4:03 PM | Fact-checked by Frank Bass

Key Points

The Great Wealth Transfer involves trillions from Baby Boomers passing to younger generations.
This shift presents opportunities in markets focused on tech and sustainable investments.
Beginners should consider sectors favoring generational trends and values for long-term gains.

When talking about personal finance, many terms are thrown around as shorthand for very large phenomena, like the Great Wealth Transfer. This massive transfer of wealth between generations is already in progress, but what does it really mean for you?

Loading paragraph...

Multigenerational family gathered in a field — Image source: Getty Images.

Loading image...

Loading paragraph...

Loading pitch...

Loading paragraph...

Related investing topics

Loading paragraph...

How Many Americans Own Stock? About 162 Million -- but the Wealthiest 1% Own More Than Half

Many Americans own stock, but it's distributed very unequally, with the vast majority owned by the wealthiest investors.

Making the Most of Your Inheritance

Pay off debt? Donate it? You have options when it comes to what to do with an inheritance. Learn more about your options here.

Kevin O'Leary Is Concerned About Leaving Too Large an Inheritance -- So Are Two-Thirds of High-Net-Worth Individuals

Inheritance is a big issue for high-net-worth Americans. We asked them their thoughts on the subject.

Study: First-Generation Americans Face Unique Financial Obstacles

First-generation Americans have a unique set of circumstances that affect their finances.

Loading hub_pages...

Loading paragraph...

Loading pitch...

About the Author

Kristi Waterworth has been a contributing real estate and financial expert at The Motley Fool, covering real estate, investing, and personal finance topics, since 2020. Kristi has been interviewed by various TV media outlets and podcasts for her real estate investing expertise – from residential real estate to digital real estate and everything in between. Kristi’s journalist career spans over 25 years, and she has written about real estate investing, homeownership, and home construction specifically for the last decade. She was also previously a licensed Realtor and general building contractor before the Great Recession and housing market collapse. She holds a bachelor’s degree in American history from Columbia College in Missouri.

TMFMaldivesBlue

@MaldivesBlues

The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.