Helping your children secure their financial future

Family of four seated on a bench outside

Equipping children with knowledge and resources can help them financially prepare for their future.

Julie Caperton
Julie Caperton
Head of Banking, Lending, & Trust
Wells Fargo Wealth & Investment Management

As a parent of high school and college-aged young adults, I know how hectic life can be. Between their extracurricular activities, schoolwork, and social lives, it can sometimes be hard to get in a simple “Hello”!

But having spent the past two decades of my career in the financial services industry, I’ve come to understand just how important it is to ensure that my children, as young adults, are equipped with the knowledge and resources they need to financially prepare for their future. So we find the time to talk so I can learn from them and they can learn from me.

Dedication to hard work

As I was growing up, my parents taught me one of the most valuable things that you can share with your children: the importance of hard work. I’m proud of my accomplishments both professionally and, as a result of that professional success, financially.

Our recent Wells Fargo Wealth & Investment Management survey1 confirms that most wealth creators don’t credit sheer luck for their wealth accumulation. They attribute their dedication, their education, and their willingness to take on new opportunities as key factors in their financial success. Teaching our children that putting in the effort and working hard are essential components in maintaining and growing wealth is a valuable life lesson both for wealth creation and for development of character.

Sharing the credit

No one truly achieves success on their own — we are almost always assisted by our support groups, our teams, and those who want to ensure we succeed. Our survey suggests that 78% of wealth creators — me included — will give credit to those who have helped them get to where they are today. I couldn’t have achieved what I have without the support of my husband, who chose to be a stay-at-home dad for many years. Additionally, my financial advisor has been instrumental in helping secure my family’s future.

One of the biggest topics of discussion we’ve had with our children has been that financial success comes from collaborating with others and leaning into the resources at your disposal. Here are a few resources that I have discussed with my children that have helped my husband and me build a strong financial foundation:

  • Financial advisors: The power of a financial advisor is not something to be understated. Working with my financial advisor to define our financial goals has been a massive part of preparing for my family’s future.
  • Market intelligence: Reading and understanding the market research and actionable suggestions from the Wells Fargo Investment Institute helps me ensure that I enter into the conversations with my financial advisor with the right foundation. I encourage my children to utilize social media, technology, and events that the Private Bank offers to develop a solid financial education foundation.
  • Philanthropy: Part of any healthy wealth plan includes how and why you want to make an impact on the world. Developing a thoughtful philanthropic plan that aligns with your values, as opposed to just being responsive to donation requests, is a great way to introduce your children to the concept of giving back while being able to measure your impact.

Communicate, communicate, and communicate

A plan is not complete until all elements are in place and the plan has been communicated to and understood by all relevant stakeholders. Our survey shows that one in four wealth creators say their children have a detailed understanding of their inheritance plans — this statistic demonstrates that we as parents can do better in equipping our children with the financial knowledge they need. Having regular conversations regarding matters like how we made saving for their higher education a priority in our investment plans or how we helped ensure that they would have a solid financial foundation now and in the future is the first step to building that foundation.

With the current state of the markets, rising young adults may have a tougher time building and maintaining wealth. Preparing our children with the knowledge and resources that are needed to build the future and legacy they desire is one of the greatest gifts that we as parents can provide.

 

 

1. On behalf of Wells Fargo Wealth Management, Versta Research conducted a national survey of 1,008 wealth creators, defined as U.S. adults aged 50 and over who have at least $1 million in investable assets, excluding those who inherited most of their assets. The sample included 136 from Generation X (ages 50 to 57), 771 Baby Boomers (ages 58 to 76), and 101 from the Silent Generation (ages 77 and older). Data were weighted by age to match current population estimates of U.S. households with $1M+ in investable assets, derived from the Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Consumer Finances. The survey was conducted January 3 – 18, 2023. Assuming no sample bias, the maximum margin of error for full-sample estimates is ±3%.

Wells Fargo Wealth & Investment Management (WIM) is a division within Wells Fargo & Company. WIM provides financial products and services through various bank and brokerage affiliates of Wells Fargo & Company.

The Private Bank is an experience level for qualifying clients of WIM. Bank products and services are available through Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Member FDIC.

Wells Fargo Investment Institute, Inc. is a registered investment adviser and wholly owned subsidiary of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company.